Football is in mourning

The Dutch football federation announced the death of Johan Neeskens on Monday. The former Ajax and Barça midfielder was 73 years old.

The painful news was brought by the Dutch football federation. “We are deeply saddened by the sudden death of Johan Neeskens, indicates the Oranje account. Forever one of our greatest icons. Rest in peace, Johan. »

Described by the UEFA website as “a steel-hard midfielder, a tireless runner with good technical quality and a goalscorer”, Neeskens is one of the emblematic players of Dutch football of the 1970s. one of the symbols of total football who, like his friend Johan Cruyff, from whom he is inseparable, shone under the colors of Ajax, FC Barcelona and the Netherlands selection.

Three Champions Leagues, two World Cup finals

Trained as a right-back, Neeskens exploded in midfield with Ajax, playing mainly in support of Cruyff. He was an important member of the great Ajax who won the Champion Clubs’ Cup three years in a row, the ancestor of the Champions League, between 1971 and 1973. In 1974, a year after Cruyff, he also joined Barça , where he remained for five years, notably winning a Coupe du Roi and a Coupe des Coupes, before wandering, notably in the United States, until the end of his career.

With the Netherlands, Neeskens has 49 caps and 17 goals. He played in two World Cup finals, in 1974 and 1978, the second without Cruyff, who had retired from international duty a year earlier.