Team Focus: How Van Gaal's Holland Will Line Up this Summer
The loss of box-to-box midfielder Kevin Strootman forced Louis van Gaal to confront the orange elephant in the room ahead of this this summer's World Cup; a fragile defence and a squad limited by its youthfulness (inexperience, at the highest level, a by-product). Van Gaal arrived, in July 2012, with the national team in a state of transition, at a crossroad between two generations. His long- term thinking, though, ensures it won't be long before the next Clockwork Orange incarnation. In the meantime his choice of formation, 5-3-2 (or "3-4-3" as he insists it be called), will serve those at his disposal well - three central defenders, full-backs pushing up either side of two midfielders who play in front of the defence, with a number ten and two forwards - "it is a system in which the players can show their strength", and hopefully turn a weaknesses (the defence) into a strength, too.
Collective responsibility is at the centre of his ethos; and this formation - three defenders and three attackers, full-backs supporting both - plays right into it. (However, there is room for manoeuvre. "We could always go back to 4-3-3, that's not too difficult, even during a match.") One guarantee, as Van Gaal stressed, is they won't be defensive or reactionary. "The full-backs in possession operate as wingers, so it's definitely offensive, and it will be hard for opponents to play against us."
Van Gaal, a disciple of the "Dutch school", will continue to encourage his team to play circulation and combination football. The former, lest we forget, is also a defensive weapon: if your opponent doesn't have the ball they can't harm you. Marco van Basten, a supporter of the move, sees advantages. "The possibilities on the counter are endless," he told De Telegraaf, citing Juventus as a reference.
Inspiration, closer to home, came from the playing fields of Varkenoord. Ronald Koeman, former assistant at Barça, successfully utilised it on three separate occasions (winning each time, scoring 9 goals and conceding just 1) including in Feyenoord's away win at PSV at which Van Gaal was present. In front of him was a template that he can adopt.
What made it more appealing was three-fifths of their rear-guard - Daryl Janmaat, Stefan de Vrij and Bruno Martins Indi - have been regulars under him and the trio are almost certain to line-up against La Roja on June 13, barring any injuries, of course. Having a core, as Spain and Germany have shown, from the same club would only benefit the national team. If there's one area you'd want that to be, it would be the defence: a telepathic understanding and strong communication as a result of playing together on a weekly basis is hugely beneficial.
The odd man out is Joris Mathijsen who was not selected, his 'libero' duties expected to be fulfilled by ex-Feyenoord skipper Ron Vlaar, who in his second season for Aston Villa averaged 6.6 clearances per game, showing a level of anticipation needed to be the last line of defence. Terence Kongolo, who won his first Oranje cap in their recent friendly against Ecuador, earned widespread praise in his eight league games at left-back and six in the centre but remains a great talent. A more experienced choice is Patrick van Aanholt.
Defence, it seems, could be the best form of attack for Oranje. Koeman correctly points out the compact nature and versatility of the system; wing-backs in attack and full-backs when defending, and fortunately the Dutch have two players tailor-made for the roles in Janmaat and Van Aanholt. Both have the athleticism needed to operate on their own on the flank and are strong dribblers who love to maraud forward. Van Aanholt leads the way, narrowly, in terms of interceptions (1.7 per game) while Janmaat leads when it comes to tackles. The former ended last season with more goals (4) while the latter led for assists (5).
Another requirement of the system is build-up play starting from central defence but that is no problem for the Oranje. There's a plethora of 'footballing defenders' to choose from: individuals who combine the art of defending with playmaking, rarely resorting to physicality and instead resolving situations through good positional sense. De Vrij and Martins Indi, following his blueprint ('number three and four' tandem, a right-left foot combination), are the first choice pairing, with the advantage of having played many games together at club level.
Every relationship needs to have the right balance and both players complement each other. De Vrij is more strategic (2.2 tackles and 2 interceptions per game in 2013-14) whereas Martins Indi enjoys nothing more than starting attacks, completing an impressive 86.7% of his passes. Joël Veltman - who made WhoScored's 'Eredivisie team of the season' - is, however, a serious alternative to De Vrij. After his successful debut against Colombia last year, Van Gaal compared him to Frank de Boer due to his unperturbed nature and strong reading the game. Like his club manager, his distribution is a serious asset, averaging 81.8 passes per game in the Eredivisie this season and 87.3 in his three Champions League appearances. It is worth noting that whatever back-three and wing-backs are selected it will be a relatively inexperienced defence compared to most sides at the World Cup.
The margin for error is small, in the Eredivisie a lapse in concentration is not always punished and that's why Van Gaal - the most pragmatic amongst idealists - has opted for safety in numbers (the screening role of Daley Blind or Jordy Clasie and Nigel de Jong in midfield is pivotal) and that gives them the best chance of escaping a group that contains world champions Spain, tournament dark horses Chile and an Australian side with nothing to lose.
How do you think the Oranje should line up in Brazil? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below
