FIFA WC 2022: Van Gaal's one last grand hurrah

Despite suffering from an aggressive form of prostate cancer, the Netherlands coach wants to produce one final miracle before he fades from view in a sport
Louis Van Gaal, wants to produce one last grand hurrah before he fades from view...
Louis Van Gaal, wants to produce one last grand hurrah before he fades from view...

DOHA: “As a person, I have not changed, I may have developed,” reflected Dutch coach Louis Van Gaal on the evolution of his personality over the last two decades, a period in which he trained FC Bayern Munich, Barcelona and Manchester United. “I have gained experience, but I still have the same vision, as when I started, that has to do with the holistic principle of a human: behind the player you have a human and that determines a lot.”

On the eve of the Netherlands’ World Cup curtain raiser against Senegal, Van Gaal’s every word held the attention of the press corps. A doyen of the coaching guild, Van Gaal, now a septuagenarian, has softened up. With age comes perhaps a sense of existential calm. He no longer offends journalists in public. His answers are more benign, sometimes reflective. He quipped at a journalist that he would not reveal his starting XI, but that was as frisky as he got.

“I know, but you don’t,” replied Van Gaal, who is suffering from an aggressive form of prostate cancer. He has had multiple chemotherapy sessions but that has not stopped him from leading the Netherlands out at the World Cup.

This is LVG 2.0, a global reference in the guild of elite coaching, still no-nonsense, but in essence, simply a man who wants to produce one last grand hurrah before he fades from view in a sport that offers little time for reflection and emotion. It’s his third spell with the Netherlands. He failed to get Oranje to the 2002 World Cup in the Far East but in 2014, Van Gaal produced a minor miracle leading the Netherlands to the bronze medal.

Oranje got out of a group with the then reigning champions Spain, defeating La Roja 5-1 in an epic for the ages, a strong Chile and Australia. In the last four, they fell against Argentina on penalties. Van Gaal had maximized the qualities of a modest squad at his disposal. Yes, the front three were world-class - Robin Van Persie, Arjen Robben and Wesley Sneijder with the latter sacrificing himself in a number ten role - but the rest of the team were very average. Leroy Fer and Daryl Janmaat were among the players who never progressed at the club level after the tournament. To address that, Van Gaal settled on a very un-Dutch 5-3-2 formation. Maintaining that system was suicidal at Manchester United.

Van Gaal acknowledges that the understanding of the game is a constant flux of systems and formations. He said: “I always want to play according to the qualities of the players - all those principles have remained the same, but football has become faster, 10-15 meters between the defenders in Brazil, now I say 5-10 metres and this guy [Virgil Van Dijk sitting next to Van Gaal] has to deal with it, and that isn’t simple because his club plays differently. There are moments in my career that I concluded that you can do things differently and that is what I am trying to express.”

Even so, back home, Van Gaal is perhaps not all that popular. Dutch football rekindles memories of Rinus Michels, Johan Cruyff and Totaalvoetbal, a system and philosophy of play that reshaped how theorists and coaches thought and conceived the game. In 2014, he betrayed the default 4-3-3 formation of Dutch football.

In breaking with Dutch tradition, Van Gaal’s choice for a different formation is understandable: he has a wealth of central defenders to pick from, including Virgil van Dijk, Matthijs de Ligt, Stefan de Vrij and Nathan Aké, and he values defensive security. Van Gaal also thinks that his team’s options going forward are a bit more limited and therefore has reverted to the formation that brought him so much success at the World Cup in Brazil.

In a recent, touching documentary centring on Van Gaal’s life, the Dutchman demonstrated that he too is human and vulnerable. It begged the question of why Van Gaal — a top coach and older statesman of the game, who has little to prove — would share the secrets of his soul with a large audience?

The answer was again simple: he longs for greater recognition in the Netherlands. Much will depend on how Oranje do at the World Cup, to start with against Senegal, the African champions. The Senegalese will be without their talisman Sadio Mané, who was ruled out of the tournament with an injury. Dutch topscorer Memphis Depay is also not a match fit, so both teams will be handicapped, but there is no doubt that Van Gaal will have one last trick up his sleeve.

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