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"The intellectualisation
of football has
always foundered
on a simple problem-
-the players. Doing
all your most
rewarding thinking
with your feet seems
to dull the philo-
sophical impulse.
Unless, of course,
you are Dutch.
According to legend,
Europeans played
a moronic, muscular
version of the world's
game, until Holland
proclaimed its vision
of total football in the
1974 World Cup,
and enlightenment
dawned."

From:
Brilliant Orange: The Neurotic Genius of Dutch Football
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Royston Drenthe: "I learned a lot from Schuster"

Wednesday 10 December 2008

Royston Drenthe, member of the Dutch contingency at Real Madrid, reacted calmly to the sacking of their coach Bernd Schuster and the appointment of Juande Ramos.

"These things happen when it's not going well. Nothing you can do about it," Drenthe told Dutch daily De Telegraaf.

Schuster led the Royals to the league title in his first season, but this season the engine is sticking.

Real are fifth in the Primera Division, nine points behind leaders FC Barcelona, next weekend's opponents.

A remark about that game spurred the club's management to act now.

Schuster stunned fans and the club by saying that Madrid don't stand a chance in Barcelona on Saturday.

Only a few hours after Schuster was fired Ramos faced the squad of Madrid during the last training session before tonight's Champions League game against Zenit St. Petersburg.

 

"Daarna hebben we een goed gesprek met hem gehad", aldus Drenthe over de oud-coach van Sevilla en Tottenham Hotspur. "Hij was duidelijk in alle opzichten, vindt dat we met z'n allen voor de prijzen moeten gaan en noemt hard werken als basis. Dat ben ik met hem eens. Ik zal alles geven om te laten zien wat ik in huis heb." Te beginnen vanavond. "Ik zit in de selectie", aldus de herstelde Nederlander.

Hoewel het ontslag van Schuster al even in de lucht hing, kwam het voor Drenthe toch nog als een verrassing. "Ik hoorde het in de middag, rond een uur of twee, nadat ik een dutje had gedaan. Mijn moeder was gebeld door mijn zaakwaarnemer Sigi Lens." Volgens de oud-Feyenoorder hoeft Schuster zich geen zorgen te maken over zijn toekomst. "Hij is een goede man en een uitstekende trainer, die me veel heeft geleerd. Vooral hoe ik met druk moet omgaan. Ik weet zeker dat er een andere mooie club voor hem komt."

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