Johan Neeskens

Johannes Jacobus Neeskens (Template:IPA; 15 September 1951 – 6 October 2024) was a Dutch football manager and player. A midfielder, he was an important member of the Netherlands national team that finished as runners-up in the 1974 and 1978 FIFA World Cups and is considered one of the greatest midfielders of all time.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2004, he was named one of the 125 Greatest Living Footballers at a FIFA Awards Ceremony,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> while in 2017 he was included in the FourFourTwo list of the 100 all-time greatest players, at the 64th position.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

After his retirement in 1991, Neeskens was assistant manager to Guus Hiddink with the Dutch and Australian national teams, and to Frank Rijkaard for the Netherlands, Barcelona and Galatasaray. He was also head coach of NEC Nijmegen, the Netherlands B national team,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and Mamelodi Sundowns.

Early life

Neeskens was born in Heemstede in North Holland on 15 September 1951. In his childhood, marked by his parents' divorce, he slept in a corridor due to lack of space.<ref name=telegraph>Template:Cite news</ref>

Neeskens was gifted at sports as a child, including gymnastics and baseball. He represented the Netherlands at a youth European Championship in the latter sport.<ref name=telegraph/>

Club career

Neeskens started his career at Racing Club Heemstede in 1968, before being spotted by Rinus Michels and signed for Ajax in 1970.<ref name="Chiesa">Template:Cite magazine</ref> The youngster impressed at right-back, playing in that position for Ajax in the 1971 European Cup Final win against Panathinaikos. During the 1971–72 season, Neeskens took up more of a central midfield role, in support of Johan Cruyff. He adapted well to his new central midfield role because he was a tireless runner, had great technical skills and scored his fair share of goals. Ajax completed a hat-trick of European Cup wins between 1971 and 1973, and Neeskens moved on to FC Barcelona in 1974 to join Cruyff and Michels. There he was nicknamed Johan Segon (Johan the Second).<ref name="Chiesa"/>

While his time at Barcelona was relatively unsuccessful for the club (one cup title in 1978, and the 1979 Cup Winners' Cup), he was hugely popular amongst the fans. In 1979 he accepted an offer from the New York Cosmos, spending five years at the club. He earned the equivalent of 600,000 Dutch guilders (roughly $300,000) per year at the club.<ref name=vi/> Having been absent without reason for the third time, he was given a nine-month suspension by manager Hennes Weisweiler in late 1980.<ref name=vi/> The Cosmos released him in October 1984. He also played for FC Groningen during the 1984–85 season. In June 1985, he signed with the South Florida Sun of the United Soccer League.<ref>NEESKENS' GAME-WINNER LIFTS SUN, 3–1 Miami Herald, The (FL) – Sunday, 23 June 1985</ref> The USL collapsed six games into the 1985 season. On 15 August 1985, he signed with the Kansas City Comets of the Major Indoor Soccer League.<ref>Sports People. Nytimes.com (15 August 1985). Retrieved on 29 June 2011.</ref>

Neeskens then played for FC Baar (1988–90) and FC Zug in Switzerland, finally retiring in 1991.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

International career

File:FC Barcelona op Schiphol, van links naar rechts Neesken Michels en Cruijff op S, Bestanddeelnr 928-7164.jpg

Three of the most notable figures of the Totaalvoetbal school: Johan Neeskens, Rinus Michels and Johan Cruyff in 1976

File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-N0716-0315, Fußball-WM, BRD - Niederlande 2-1.jpg

Neeskens scoring the opening goal in the 1974 World Cup final against West Germany

Neeskens was capped 49 times for the Netherlands national team, scoring 17 goals. He made his debut against East Germany in 1970, and played a crucial role in the 1974 and 1978 FIFA World Cups, playing in central midfield.<ref name=telegraph/>

In 1974 World Cup qualification, Neeskens scored a hat-trick in a 9–0 win over Norway and also neutralised the attacking threat of Paul Van Himst against Belgium; the latter performance was criticised as a "disgrace" in Dutch newspaper de Volkskrant for having committed 13 fouls.<ref name=vi>Template:Cite news</ref> At the tournament in West Germany, he scored two penalties against Bulgaria, and a goal in a 2–0 win over reigning champions Brazil to put the Netherlands into the final.<ref name=telegraph/> Neeskens scored the opening goal of the 1974 World Cup final against West Germany with a penalty kick after only two minutes of play.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Four years later, Neeskens was a crucial player for the Netherlands (despite a rib injury suffered in the Scotland defeat), in the absence of Cruyff who had retired from international football in 1977. The Netherlands again reached the final, only to lose again to the host nation, this time Argentina, going down 3–1 after extra time (the score at the end of regulation was 1–1).<ref name=vi/>

Neeskens's international appearances were fewer in number after he moved to the New York Cosmos. He declined the key UEFA Euro 1980 qualifier against East Germany in November 1979, citing physical and emotional exhaustion.<ref name=vi/> After his nine-month ban for club absences was lifted, he was reintroduced to the national squad by manager Kees Rijvers in late 1981 for two qualifiers to the 1982 FIFA World Cup. He was cheered in a 3–0 home win over Belgium, but the team lost 2–0 away to France in his final game and missed out on the final tournament.<ref name=vi/>

Coaching career

Guus Hiddink appointed Neeskens as assistant coach for the Netherlands in 1995.<ref name=vi/> They led the team at the 1998 FIFA World Cup.<ref name=australia>Template:Cite news</ref> He remained in the role under successor Frank Rijkaard, who led the national team in its co-hosting of Euro 2000.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2000 he was appointed coach of Dutch side NEC Nijmegen, leading them to their first European appearance in twenty years in 2003, but was fired in December 2004 with the team in 14th place.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In December 2005, Neeskens was appointed assistant coach of the Australia national team, once again at the request of Guus Hiddink, the Socceroos's manager.<ref name=australia/> He worked alongside Hiddink and Graham Arnold as part of their World Cup 2006 campaign, and was desired by Football Australia to replace Russia-bound Hiddink after the tournament.<ref name=abc>Template:Cite news</ref>

After the 2006 World Cup, Neeskens returned to FC Barcelona to replace Henk ten Cate in the club's technical staff, reuniting with Rijkaard.<ref name=abc/> In May 2008, Rijkaard was dismissed with one year remaining of his contract after finishing third in La Liga, with his assistants Neeskens and Eusebio Sacristán leaving with him.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Neeskens joined Frank Rijkaard at Galatasaray as his assistant manager in 2009, and left the club alongside Rijkaard in October 2010.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He became the coach of South African club Mamelodi Sundowns in 2011. He was sacked in December 2012 with the team second from bottom after 12 games and having lost the League Cup final to Bloemfontein Celtic.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Style of play

File:Ajax tegen Standard Luik vriendschappelijke wedstrijd. Kop Johan Neeskens (Aja, Bestanddeelnr 923-7421.jpg

Neeskens in 1970, before a friendly game between Ajax and Standard Liège

Speaking of Neeskens, the UEFA website stated that the "steel-hard midfielder was a tireless runner yet also had nice technique and scored goals, helping to set the stage for Cruyff to shine. A box-to-box midfielder with incredible stamina, great mentality, and a powerful shot, Neeskens excelled at pressuring opponents to regain possession. "He was worth two men in midfield," said teammate Sjaak Swart."<ref>The greatest teams of all time: Ajax 1971–73. UEFA.com. Retrieved on 30 October 2015.</ref>

Neeskens had begun his career as a right-back for Heemstede, but was moved into midfield by Ajax manager Ștefan Kovács. He played in the Total Football team designed by Kovács's predecessor Rinus Michels, in which players were expected to change position fluidly.<ref name=telegraph/>

Personal life and death

Neeskens was married twice: to Marianne Schiphof in 1974 with whom he had a son, and to Swiss-born Marlis von Reding in 1985, with whom he had two daughters and a son.<ref name=vi/><ref name=telegraph/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> With another woman he also had a son, John, whom he never publicly acknowledged and who also became a professional footballer.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Neeskens died while in Algeria on 6 October 2024, at the age of 73.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He was in the country as part of a KNVB coaching project, and had suffered a heart attack.<ref name=vi/>

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup		League cup		Continental		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
RCH	1968–69<ref name="nftstat">Template:NFT player</ref><ref name="wf">Template:Cite web</ref>	Eerste Divisie	34	0	1	0	–		–		–		35	0
	1969–70<ref name="nftstat"/><ref name="wf"/>	Eerste Divisie	34	1	1	0	–		–		–		35	1
	Total		68	1	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	70	1
Ajax	1970–71<ref name="wf"/>	Eredivisie	33	1	6	2	–		9Template:Efn	2	–		48	5
	1971–72<ref name="wf"/>	Eredivisie	28	10	5	2	–		8Template:Efn	0	–		41	12
	1972–73<ref name="wf"/>	Eredivisie	32	7	1	0	–		7Template:Efn	0	3Template:Efn	1	43	8
	1973–74<ref name="wf"/>	Eredivisie	31	14	4	0	–		2Template:Efn	0	2Template:Efn	1	37	15
	Total		124	32	16	4	0	0	24	2	5	2	169	40
Barcelona	1974–75<ref name="bdf">Template:BDFutbol</ref>	La Liga	27	7	0	0	–		7Template:Efn	1	–		34	8
	1975–76<ref name="bdf"/>	La Liga	32	12	0	0	–		9Template:Efn	6	–		41	18
	1976–77<ref name="bdf"/>	La Liga	33	8	0	0	–		8Template:Efn	1	–		41	9
	1977–78<ref name="bdf"/>	La Liga	18	2	2	0	–		7Template:Efn	1	–		27	3
	1978–79<ref name="bdf"/>	La Liga	30	6	1	0	–		9Template:Efn	0	–		40	6
	Total		140	35	3	0	0	0	40	9	0	0	183	44
New York Cosmos	1979<ref name="nftstat"/>	NASL	13	4							5	2	18	6
	1980<ref name="nftstat"/>	NASL	17	4							1	0	18	4
	1981<ref name="nftstat"/>	NASL	6	2							5	1	11	3
	1982<ref name="nftstat"/>	NASL	17	0							1	0	18	0
	1983<ref name="nftstat"/>	NASL	23	2							1	0	24	2
	1984<ref name="nftstat"/>	NASL	18	5									18	5
	Total		94	17							13	2	107	20
Groningen	1984–85<ref name="wf"/>	Eredivisie	7	0	0	0	–		0	0	–		7	0
South Florida Sun	1985Template:Citation needed	USL	1	1									1	1
Kansas City Comets	1985–86<ref name="nftstat"/>	MISL	23	1									23	1
Löwenbrau	1986–87
Baar	1987–88<ref name="nftstat"/>		9	1									9	1
	1988–89<ref name="nftstat"/>		13	4									13	4
	1989–90<ref name="nftstat"/>		1	0									1	0
	Total		23	5									23	5
Zug	1990–91<ref name="nftstat"/>		1	0
Career total			450+	91+	21+	4+			64+	11+	5+	2+	553+	110+

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year<ref>Johan Neeskens – International Appearances. rsssf.org. Retrieved on 29 June 2011.</ref><ref name= "Voetbalstats">Template:Cite web</ref>

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Netherlands	1970	2	0
	1971	3	0
	1972	4	5
	1973	5	1
	1974	13	9
	1975	3	1
	1976	4	1
	1977	3	0
	1978	8	0
	1979	2	0
	1980	0	0
	1981	2	0
Total		49	17

Scores and results list the Netherlands' goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Neeskens goal.

List of international goals scored by Johan Neeskens<ref name = "Voetbalstats" />

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	16 February 1972	Athens, Greece	Template:Fb	4–0	5–0	Friendly
2	30 August 1972	Prague, Czechoslovakia	Template:Fb	2–0	2–1	Friendly
3	1 November 1972	Rotterdam, Netherlands	Template:Fb	1–0	9–0	1974 FIFA World Cup qualification
4				2–0
5				4–0
6	29 August 1973	Deventer, Netherlands	Template:Fb	3–0	8–1	1974 FIFA World Cup qualification
7	26 May 1974	Amsterdam, Netherlands	Template:Fb	1–0	4–1	Friendly
8	23 June 1974	Dortmund, Germany	Template:Fb	1–0	4–1	1974 FIFA World Cup Group 3
9				2–0
10	30 June 1974	Gelsenkirchen, Germany	Template:Fb	1–0	2–0	1974 FIFA World Cup Group A
11	3 July 1974	Dortmund, Germany	Template:Fb	1–0	2–0	1974 FIFA World Cup Group A
12	7 July 1974	Munich, Germany	Template:Fb	1–0	1–2	1974 FIFA World Cup final
13	4 September 1974	Solna, Sweden	Template:Fb	3–0	5–1	Friendly
14				4–1
15	25 September 1974	Helsinki, Finland	Template:Fb	3–1	3–1	UEFA Euro 1976 qualification
16	15 October 1975	Amsterdam, Netherlands	Template:Fb	1–0	3–0	UEFA Euro 1976 qualification
17	25 April 1976	Rotterdam, Netherlands	Template:Fb	4–0	5–0	UEFA Euro 1976 qualification

Honours

Ajax<ref name="nftstat"/><ref name="Honours">Template:Cite web</ref>

• Eredivisie: 1971–72, 1972–73
• KNVB Cup: 1970–71, 1971–72
• European Cup: 1970–71, 1971–72, 1972–73
• Intercontinental Cup: 1972
• European Super Cup: 1972, 1973

Barcelona<ref name="Honours"/>

• Copa del Rey: 1977–78
• European Cup Winners' Cup: 1978–79

New York Cosmos<ref name="Honours"/>

• North American Soccer League: 1980, 1982

Netherlands<ref name="Honours"/>

• FIFA World Cup runner-up: 1974, 1978
• UEFA European Championship third place: 1976
• Tournoi de Paris: 1978<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Individual

• FUWO European Team of the Season: 1972<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Sport Ideal European XI: 1974,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> 1975<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• 1974 FIFA World Cup Silver Boot<ref name="Honours"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• 1974 FIFA World Cup All-Star Team<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Don Balón Award (La Liga Foreign Player of the Year): 1975–76<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• La Liga Team of The Year: 1976,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> 1977,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> 1979<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• FIFA 100<ref>Template:Cite news

</ref>

• Ballon d'Or Dream Team (Bronze): 2020<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

External links

• Johan Neeskens at Voetbal International Template:In lang
• Template:BDFutbol
• Johan Neesken's USA soccer league stats at nasljerseys.com
• Template:FIFA player