Football NOS•today, 06:18
Why do Dutch football clubs almost always lose to Portuguese teams? It’s a question Mitchell van der Gaag is often asked.
And that’s not surprising, since the Dutch trainer and former soccer player has lived in the southern European country for a few periods since 2001. Today in a coastal town Cascais, just west of the capital Lisbon, where Feyenoord will visit Benfica tonight for the Champions League game.
At the beginning of this century, Van der Gaag left as a central defender from FC Utrecht for Portugal’s CS Marítimo in Madeira. He played football on the island for five seasons and stayed there as the club’s trainer. He then coached the Belenenses club until 2014.
Without looking at it
And immediately in his first year, he noticed something about Portuguese football. “Usually it wasn’t a joke. But at the end of the day they almost always won. That’s a big difference with Dutch clubs,” said Van der Gaag, who after two years as Erik ten Hag’s assistant at Manchester United now enjoys it. the Portuguese sun without a club.
Van der Gaag on Portuguese football: ‘Most of the time it wasn’t to complain’
“I can also clearly remember my first conversation with the trainer. He drew the field, with a red field at the back. And he said: if you are under pressure, you have to shoot the ball go. People think about this in a different way. I’m not saying it’s better, but it’s different.”
The will to win
The sheer will to win, without conceding a goal, has been completely normal in Portugal for a long time, says Van der Gaag. “That’s how you’re raised here,” said the former coach of Excelsior and NAC Breda, among others.
Certainly, Dutch clubs won the European Cup I or Champions League more often than Portuguese clubs: 6 out of 4 times. On the other hand, the Netherlands are often eliminated by Portugal in final competitions. In addition, Benfica is doing extremely well against Dutch opposition. In 29 European matches, the club lost only 6 times.
Feyenoord and Benfica played against each other this summer. In the friendly battle for the Eusébio Cup, the Rotterdam team lost at least 5-0. It did not necessarily mean the start of a good season for the Portuguese club. Trainer Roger Schmidt was sacked at the end of August after disappointing results.
Under new coach Bruno Lage, the wind is in Benfica’s sails again. They won 4-0 against Atlético Madrid in the Champions League and climbed to third place in Primeira Liga, behind Sporting Lisbon and FC Porto, the other top clubs in Portugal.
By the way: “Benfica is the biggest in Portugal,” says Van der Gaag. “I remember my first match for Marítimo, at home against Porto. You saw a lot more Porto supporters than Marítimo. At Sporting it was a bit more. But then Benfica came. Well, it’s it’s the whole stadium for Benfica.”
Feyenoord must pay special attention to the players Ángel Di María and Kerem Aktürkoğlu tonight, says Van der Gaag. And of course the former Feyenoord players Orkun Kokçü and Fredrik Aursnes.
“Benfica can choose. They are good on the ball. But Portuguese teams usually drop down and let the opposition play football. Yes, Benfica too, no problem. If that produces efficiency, people will be satisfied. Nice football will be appreciated here too. All you have to do is connect it to profit.”
But Feyenoord can also rely on its own strength, says Van der Gaag. The Rotterdam club are “moved up”. “I saw Feyenoord against Girona too (2-3 win, ed.).
Van der Gaag on Benfica: “Nice football is also appreciated against here”
2024-10-23 04:18:00
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