Johan Cruyff, one of the greatest footballers in history, died today at theage of 68 from lung cancer, his family announced. Cruyff "died peacefully in Barcelona, surrounded by his family after a hard-fought battle with cancer", said a statement on the legend's official website.
"It's with great sadness that we ask you to respect the family's privacy during their time of grief." The Dutchman won three European Cups as a player with Ajax as well as three Ballon d'Or titles (1971, 1973, 1974). He then led Barcelona to their first European Cup title as a manager in 1992.
The incarnation of Total Football that took the Dutch team to the World Cup final in 1974, Cruyff was a long-time smoker who revealed in October last year that he had lung cancer.
Here are 10 quotes by Cruyff that prove his footballing genius:
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Technique is not being able to juggle a ball 1000 times. Anyone can do that by practicing. Then you can work in the circus. Technique is passing the ball with one touch, with the right speed, at the right foot of your team mate.
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In my teams, the goalie is the first attacker, and the striker the first defender.
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Why couldn’t you beat a richer club? I’ve never seen a bag of money score a goal.
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Players that aren’t true leaders but try to be, always bash other players after a mistake. True leaders on the pitch already assume others will make mistakes.
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What is speed? The sports press often confuses speed with insight. See, if I start running slightly earlier than someone else, I seem faster.
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There’s only one moment in which you can arrive in time. If you’re not there, you’re either too early or too late.
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When you play a match, it is statistically proven that players actually have the ball 3 minutes on average … So, the most important thing is: what do you do during those 87 minutes when you do not have the ball. That is what determines wether you’re a good player or not.
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After you’ve won something, you’re no longer 100 percent, but 90 percent. It’s like a bottle of carbonated water where the cap is removed for a short while. Afterwards there’s a little less gas inside.
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There is only one ball, so you need to have it.
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We must make sure their worst players get the ball the most. You’ll get it back in no time
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If you have the ball you must make the field as big as possible, and if you don’t have the ball you must make it as small as possible.
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Players today can only shoot with their laces. I could shoot with the inside, laces, and outside of both feet. In other words, I was six times better than today’s players.
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I find it terrible when talents are rejected based on computer stats. Based on the criteria at Ajax now I would have been rejected. When I was 15, I couldn’t kick a ball 15 meters with my left and maybe 20 with my right. My qualities technique and vision, are not detectable by a computer.
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Playing football is very simple, but playing simple football is the hardest thing there is.
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If I wanted you to understand it, I would have explained it better.
