That recent success might not have been possible without the foundation laid by the coach that night, Johan Cruyff, whose ‘dream team’ had the marauding, goal-scoring defender Koeman at its core.
The European Cup was one of 10 trophies the Dutchman won during a six-year spell of dominance at the Nou Camp that rivals the success enjoyed today by Lionel Messi, Xavi and Andres Iniesta. Barca’s holy trinity were joined by Neymar this week after the Brazilian wonderkid arrived for a staggering €57 million (Dh274m) and Koeman believes it is a move that any player in the world would want to make.
“The difference is big because the level is much, much higher than the level in Holland,” the Dutchman reveals of his own move to the Nou Camp from PSV Eindhoven in 1989. “They have everything at Barcelona, it is one of the biggest clubs in the world.
“Everybody likes to play for Barcelona and the way they have played over the last couple of years is very attractive and very nice to watch. That gives players much more pleasure than just defending, defending, defending. They control and they dominate football in the way that is spectacular.”
But is there an added pressure playing for Barca given what they represent to Catalonia as a whole? “No, when you are inside you know that, and you accept that, you are playing for Barcelona not for political things,” Koeman adds. “That’s outside of football, that’s outside of us. You play for the club, you play for the Catalan people but the rest of the politics is not our problem.”
Neymar has been bought, in part, with the hope of returning Barca to European glory. Tito Vilanova’s men may have cantered to the Spanish title but they were taught a lesson by Bayern Munich in the Champions League semi-finals that they are more used to handing out to others.
No longer competing
But while his former club go in search of continental success, Koeman, the only man to play for and manage Holland’s top three sides, Ajax, PSV and Feyenoord, admits his own ambitions with the latter are a lot more parochial.
Financial mismanagement had plunged the Rotterdam club into decline, the nadir of which came with a 10-0 defeat to PSV in October, 2010. But since assuming the reins in the summer of 2011, Koeman has led a resurgence with loan signings and youth-team products spurring the team on to second and third-place finishes.
The 50-year-old admits winning the Eredivisie for the first time in 15 years will be a “hard fight” next season, and for now thoughts of Champions League glory must wait. And that goes for PSV and Ajax too.
“First and second in Spain and England play directly in the Champions League, the third and fourth get the possibility to in the qualifiers. That’s difficult for countries like Holland to compete with,” Koeman adds. “It’s difficult because they can spend money everywhere for every player and we realise in Holland that it is difficult that a team from Holland will win the Champions League. It is impossible.”
Yet the 1988 European Championships winner believes the fans understand this. “They know in one game we can beat Manchester City but if we play against Manchester City 10 times we lose nine times. For that reason it is impossible to win the Champions League because you have to win against Madrid, you have to win against Barcelona, you have to win against Manchester United and that is impossible.”
Feyenoord know that to be successful they “have to do it in a different way”, according to Koeman, whose club have five players in Holland’s squad at the European Under-21 Championship. “Now you see it with Monaco who will spend so much money to become a big team and you saw it with PSG who bought a lot of good players,” he explains. “We cannot compete with that, we know what we are and we know we use young players and develop players and that’s our way to be successful.”
Good friends: Koemen alongside his former Barca team-mate Michael Laudrup.
Working abroad
Koeman though has not given up his dream of working at the highest level of European football. Away from his homeland he has worked in Portugal with Benfica and in Spain, where he led Valencia. And he would not rule out joining his friend and former team-mate Michael Laudrup in England.
“I think it would be a good step,” he says of a move to the Premier League. “I was working in Spain for Valencia, that was a great experience and maybe there will come again a moment when I go outside of Holland. I am very happy to be the coach of Feyenoord we will see what happens in the future.”
If Barcelona were ever to come knocking then it would not take a genius what would happen.
KOEMAN ON…
What it takes to become a free-kick master?
It’s more than talent and you have to train for it. It’s not that you will just score in the European Cup final as I did in 1992 against Sampdoria. It’s not just one moment – you have to train for that moment. Sometimes players think ‘oh, it’s coming’. No, it’s not coming, you have to train for that and then you are lucky.
His four favourite free-kick takers?
Michel Platini was great when it came to free-kicks and then there are others like Roberto Carlos who could strike the ball with great power. More recently there was, of course, David Beckham. There was also Juninho (Pernambucano), the Brazilian, who really was fantastic.
* Ronald Koeman was speaking at Dubai Sports City where he was a guest of the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing.
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