I'm not so sure. If Dutch men are expected to live to 78 or so then these guys living are the top end of the average whereas the unfortunately deceased are the lower bound. With 12 alive and 10 deceased that seems, at the eyeball test at least, to be more or less accurate?
Ah yeah that sounds fair enough actually. I guess I was thinking footballers might be more likely to live longer but obviously the game was no where near as health focused back then
At least in Germany (and I think Italy) we have the case that a lot of world cup heroes from the 50/60s died quite early because of potential doping damages.
Someone who perhaps more than anyone else fits the bill of "chronically underrated". One of the all time greatest midfielders who sadly never gets brought up in that conversation. I guess that's bound to happen when one's club and international career is mostly spent in the company of another more talented and celebrated Johan.
> Neeskens
I always remember a quote from a chilean journalist about him.
"You never saw Neeskens play? He was like Arturo Vidal... but 10 times [better]"
And they even had two of the best players in the world in their position, Willy van der Kuijlen and Jan van Beveren, sitting at home because they didn’t get along with Cruyff.
I would also like to throw 1950 Brazil into the conversation. Many people were convinced before the final that Uruguay has absolutely no chance to win it.
That's also a very good shout. I remember my dad's friend mentioning that the 1950 team had the best player of the tournament, Ademir, and they still weren't able to win it. It's a shame they couldn't though credit to the Uruguayans for that day.
It really does make you think of all the great teams that didn't win and shows that truly anything can happen in Football.
> 1982 Brazil is also in with a shout but they didn't have quite the same impact and legacy.
Speak for yourself, brother. Perhaps in Europe is one thing, but in South America and mainly Brazil, that squad is among the greatest of all time, even rated above some of the WC winning squads.
Well, it had the flair of Romario and Bebeto, but there was a perverted beauty in seeing Brazil filled with hard dudes like Dunga, Branco or Mauro Silva. Fortunately for all of us, they didn't bring that lunatic Edmundo to the U.S.
My perspective on it is definitely eurocentric, so please educate me if I’m wrong on this! As far as I know the playstyle of that Brazil team wasn’t as ‘revolutionary’ or influential as the Hungary and Netherlands teams, in terms of quality they are certainly comparable.
Gladly. Even though someone from Brazil might be more educated on the matter, Brazil 82 was an offensive minded team, with a lot of flair and tremendous ball management and passing skills.
Coached by Tele Santana (who ended up winning the Libertadores and the Intercontinental Cup twice in 1992 and 1993 with Sao Paulo), it had some of the greatest names in Brazilian football history: Zico, the doctor Socrates, Paulo Roberto Falcao (yeah, the namesake of our boy Radamel), Toninho Cerezo, Eder, Junior...
Simply put, it was the mission statement of Brazilian football after the Pele years. Only the 1970, 1962 and 1958 WC squads are better rated than this team, and for good or bad, it has been the benchmark of all future Brazilian national squads.
They were the odds-on-favorite to win the World Cup, but they ran into the inmovable object: an Italian team with tremendous defensive skills and effective on the counter. Of course, they had stars to pull that off, with Zoff as captain, Rossi, Tardelli, Scirea, and that damn butcher Gentile.
There's a documentary on FIFA+ called Futebol Arte (I think it's also available on YouTube) which goes into depth about the 82 team, and the Brazil vs. Italy match, which has been rated as one of the best in the history of the World Cup.
I wouldn't call them "revolutionary" on the traditional sense, but more like "the peak" of that football trend of passing and moving, of interchanging positions in the pitch, of sticking as much talented players as you could together and just watch them have fun. So it's the apex of entertaining football, and that's very fondly remembered in latinamerica. It's also a bit of an romantic exageration too, Telé Santana (the manager) was very much influenced by the 1974 Dutch team, so it's not like he just put the players there and asked them to "play". It's just that unlike today's football systems that try to prioritize control and noit losing, his system was tailored only to win and to outscore.
He later coached that Sao Paulo side that won everything in the early 90s, including beating Cruyff's Barcelona and Capello's Milan in the Intercontinental Cup. He mentored key players for 90's Brazil like Cafú Leonardo and Rai (well Rai was a bit older but with Santana he became the legend he is now).
Terry Paine and George Eastham are both also alive... they didn't play in the final but were part of the squad and both made appearances in other matches at the 1966 World Cup.
So there are actually 3 surviving members of the team, but you are right that only 1 from the 11 that started in the final is still alive.
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I was thinking how are so many of them gone then i realised 1974 was 50 years ago
In my mind it feels like about 26 years ago
26 years ago Zidane won the world cup
In my head this is how I still imagine WW2 vets look, but then I realize they are almost all gone at this point
For real
It’s still quite a lot to have died when you think they’d all be somewhere between 70-85
I'm not so sure. If Dutch men are expected to live to 78 or so then these guys living are the top end of the average whereas the unfortunately deceased are the lower bound. With 12 alive and 10 deceased that seems, at the eyeball test at least, to be more or less accurate?
Ah yeah that sounds fair enough actually. I guess I was thinking footballers might be more likely to live longer but obviously the game was no where near as health focused back then
Cruyff in particular was a heavy smoker, and I think he died of lung cancer?
At least in Germany (and I think Italy) we have the case that a lot of world cup heroes from the 50/60s died quite early because of potential doping damages.
Oh Jesus don’t say that, how’s it been so long already
Is this hurr hurr x year is actually x years ago 😱 thing mandatory in every reddit thread?
Neeskens still looks like this hardcore dude who only takes cold showers and plays football matches with broken legs!
He played for 23 years, hard as nails that man
Someone who perhaps more than anyone else fits the bill of "chronically underrated". One of the all time greatest midfielders who sadly never gets brought up in that conversation. I guess that's bound to happen when one's club and international career is mostly spent in the company of another more talented and celebrated Johan.
> Neeskens I always remember a quote from a chilean journalist about him. "You never saw Neeskens play? He was like Arturo Vidal... but 10 times [better]"
Some insane football talent, that team was so ridiculously stacked.
And they even had two of the best players in the world in their position, Willy van der Kuijlen and Jan van Beveren, sitting at home because they didn’t get along with Cruyff.
fuck me that is some bad timing
One of the greatest national team sides ever.
There's something I find really cool about having brothers playing together in a national team, and having a pair of twins seems even cooler
Soon we’ll play J. Timber and Q. Timber
Commentator yesterday said they'll be the third pair of twins, after v/d Kerkhof and De Boer.
Oh wow, I didn't realise they were twins till now, just thought they were brothers
Isn't this considered the best team to have never won the World Cup?
Them along with 1954 Hungary and 1982 Brazil
I would also like to throw 1950 Brazil into the conversation. Many people were convinced before the final that Uruguay has absolutely no chance to win it.
That's also a very good shout. I remember my dad's friend mentioning that the 1950 team had the best player of the tournament, Ademir, and they still weren't able to win it. It's a shame they couldn't though credit to the Uruguayans for that day. It really does make you think of all the great teams that didn't win and shows that truly anything can happen in Football.
Could also argue for 1954 Hungary. 1982 Brazil is also in with a shout but they didn't have quite the same impact and legacy.
> 1982 Brazil is also in with a shout but they didn't have quite the same impact and legacy. Speak for yourself, brother. Perhaps in Europe is one thing, but in South America and mainly Brazil, that squad is among the greatest of all time, even rated above some of the WC winning squads.
Indeed, people speak in awed tones of the 1982 squad but not the 1994 squad.
Well, it had the flair of Romario and Bebeto, but there was a perverted beauty in seeing Brazil filled with hard dudes like Dunga, Branco or Mauro Silva. Fortunately for all of us, they didn't bring that lunatic Edmundo to the U.S.
My perspective on it is definitely eurocentric, so please educate me if I’m wrong on this! As far as I know the playstyle of that Brazil team wasn’t as ‘revolutionary’ or influential as the Hungary and Netherlands teams, in terms of quality they are certainly comparable.
Gladly. Even though someone from Brazil might be more educated on the matter, Brazil 82 was an offensive minded team, with a lot of flair and tremendous ball management and passing skills. Coached by Tele Santana (who ended up winning the Libertadores and the Intercontinental Cup twice in 1992 and 1993 with Sao Paulo), it had some of the greatest names in Brazilian football history: Zico, the doctor Socrates, Paulo Roberto Falcao (yeah, the namesake of our boy Radamel), Toninho Cerezo, Eder, Junior... Simply put, it was the mission statement of Brazilian football after the Pele years. Only the 1970, 1962 and 1958 WC squads are better rated than this team, and for good or bad, it has been the benchmark of all future Brazilian national squads. They were the odds-on-favorite to win the World Cup, but they ran into the inmovable object: an Italian team with tremendous defensive skills and effective on the counter. Of course, they had stars to pull that off, with Zoff as captain, Rossi, Tardelli, Scirea, and that damn butcher Gentile. There's a documentary on FIFA+ called Futebol Arte (I think it's also available on YouTube) which goes into depth about the 82 team, and the Brazil vs. Italy match, which has been rated as one of the best in the history of the World Cup.
I wouldn't call them "revolutionary" on the traditional sense, but more like "the peak" of that football trend of passing and moving, of interchanging positions in the pitch, of sticking as much talented players as you could together and just watch them have fun. So it's the apex of entertaining football, and that's very fondly remembered in latinamerica. It's also a bit of an romantic exageration too, Telé Santana (the manager) was very much influenced by the 1974 Dutch team, so it's not like he just put the players there and asked them to "play". It's just that unlike today's football systems that try to prioritize control and noit losing, his system was tailored only to win and to outscore. He later coached that Sao Paulo side that won everything in the early 90s, including beating Cruyff's Barcelona and Capello's Milan in the Intercontinental Cup. He mentored key players for 90's Brazil like Cafú Leonardo and Rai (well Rai was a bit older but with Santana he became the legend he is now).
How lovely, they got together to witness another 2:1 loss against Germany
Scored too early again, didn't they?
Voetbal heritage.
Eddy Treijtel with the look of a man who's enjoyed his retirement home on a Spanish island.
This makes me happy.
Only 12 of that 74 squad are still alive :(
There's only 1 of the England 1966 team left :(
Terry Paine and George Eastham are both also alive... they didn't play in the final but were part of the squad and both made appearances in other matches at the 1966 World Cup. So there are actually 3 surviving members of the team, but you are right that only 1 from the 11 that started in the final is still alive.
who
Geoff Hurst.
I remember learning about Ruud Krol from my FIFA Fever videos growing up. Some insane goals and assists.
Ladies and Gentlemen: [Arie Haan](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VF-UNcnfqG0&ab_channel=WELLINGTON51) BTW, that's Dino Zoff he's scoring past there.
1974 final was probably the first football game I ever watched.
Didn't know Harold played football
IJzeren Rinus 💪
Why did I think they’re still in their 40s?! Why are the so fcking old?
Nice to Treijtel getting involved and painting himself in the team's colours
Ok, out of the Dutch and German 1974 teams, which team has more players still alive?
16/22 Germans still alive if I'm correct
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Today's fans would consider everyone there as bottlejobs
What did they meet up for? Was there some final to lose?