THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Johan Neeskens, one of the midfield stars of the Netherlands’ “Clockwork Orange” teams of the 1970s alongside Johan Cruyff, has died. He was 73.
The Dutch soccer association KNVB said on Monday that Neeskens died the previous day in Algeria, where he was taking part in a coaching project it organized. No cause of death was announced.
“Words fail to capture the enormity and suddenness of this loss,” the KNVB said in a statement on its website. ”Our thoughts are with his wife Marlis, his children, family and friends.
“The world not only says goodbye to a gifted sportsman but, above all, to a compassionate, driven and wonderful person.”
Neeskens lost two successive World Cup finals.
He scored from the penalty spot to give his team an early 1-0 lead in the 1974 showpiece but the Netherlands, known for its fluent brand of “total football,” went on to lose to West Germany 2-1 in Munich.
“The most beautiful football doesn’t always win,” he said later, according to the KNVB. “But it’s incredible to me that people all over the world still talk about that Dutch team. The best and most beautiful football, total football.”
Neeskens was in the team four years later when they fell agonizingly short of the world title, losing to host Argentina 3-1 after extra time in Buenos Aires.
Neeskens played 49 internationals for the Netherlands, including 12 at World Cups, and scored 17 goals.
Current Netherlands coach Ronald Koeman paid tribute to Neeskens, calling him “a small man who was my big idol.”
“As a young boy you played soccer on the street and you asked, ‘Who wants to be Cruyff? Who wants to be (Willem) van Hanegem?’ I wanted to be Johan Neeskens,” Koeman added.
Neeskens won the European Cup, the predecessor of the Champions League, three times as part of the dominant Ajax team of the early ’70s and went on to play for Barcelona and then the New York Cosmos among other teams.
“We are deeply saddened to hear about the passing of Johan Neeskens. Our thoughts are with his family at this time. Rest in peace, Ajax legend,” the Amsterdam club said on X.
Barcelona, referring to the club’s nickname, called Neeskens “A blaugrana legend who will forever be in our memory. Rest in peace.”
At a reunion of the players from the 1974 World Cup final, Neeskens explained what he believed was the key to a team’s success.
“The collective, that’s what it’s all about,” he said according to the KNVB. “You need each other on the field. You can only become a champion as a team. There is only one star and that is the team.”
After his playing career, Neeskens was an assistant coach for both the Netherlands and Australia.
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