We are here to talk about Johan Cruyff, who had a great impact on the football team of the Netherlands as well as in European football.

It is pertinent to talk about him in this context, especially at a time when the European league is underway and every country showcase their current skills as well as build on what they have achieved over the years. With Johan passing away the football world is in disbelief and it is also hard to believe that the Netherlands has been unable to clear their way into the European championships this time.

It is time to reminisce how the Dutch side was in the seventies. There was the concept of playing total football that is an alien concept today as well as Johan Cruyff, who leaves behind a legendary profile and a rich history of contributions to the world of football. The football acts that were enacted at that time were unique.

The tournament was made more exciting and natural due to the way the game was played back then. Every player was expected to be versatile as they might need to take up any position in the game as the situation demanded. A defender might be asked by the midfielder to act as the winger and to launch an attack. This is definitely a tactic that makes the games unpredictable as the opponents are unable to predict the next move of the other team from before or which player to target to defend against or to offend on the field. This is a style of playing that Johan Cryuff made popular in 1974. The concept of total football required a player to cover six different positions at any point in time like possession, positioning, coordination, midfielding, interception or exposing the opposition which were styles that Cryuff had mastered.