Cruyff, who had announced last October that he was suffering from lung cancer, had said only last month that he was “2-0 up in the first half” of his battle against the disease.
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“When I heard the news about his cancer, that was a bad day, but then I was buoyed by the news recently that he was winning the battle”, said Hodgson.
Cruyff died surrounded by his friends and family at his home in Barcelona, according to his official website.
Stuart Webb, the Rams’ chief executive at the time, recalls: “We fielded a call from the Daily Mirror to say Johan Cruyff was arriving at Derby as technical director, that Maxwell had brokered a deal through some politician who knew the great Dutchman.
No other figure in European football has changed the mentality and the way of playing in two great teams as he did with Ajax and Barcelona”.
Cruyff captained Holland at the 1974 World Cup, at the height of his playing career, and led the Dutch to the final.
Former Barcelona player Cruyff spoke about the penalty, revealing it had made him “very happy”. Ajax Cape Town were hugely influenced by the Total Football brand, which contributed immensely to the successful development of our young players.
At Ajax he won seven league titles but most notably three consecutive European Cups from 1971 to 1973.
Johan Cruyff looks on during a match at the Camp Nou in Barcelona, Spain. Impossible. Naturally we have players such as Messi, Xavi and Iniesta but they are attached to the idea that Johan Cruyff set up.
Blatter said he was “sad that football has lost such a person”.
Regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, he invented the “Cruyff Turn”, a simultaneous lightning-fast drag back and 180-degree turn.
“Today football has lost one of its best ever players and ambassadors”.
Cruyff was once a heavy smoker who gave up after heart bypass surgery in 1991.
Though Cruyff had a superb supporting cast with the Dutch national team, he was unable to capture titles at the worldwide level.
It was the first of four times Olsson faced Cruyff, another meeting coming later in 1974 when Holland thrashed Sweden 5-1 in Stockholm and three-time European Footballer of the Year scored the opening goal.
Many people after tell me, “do it with me, the sequence with Johan Cruyff”.
NEWS | Johan #Cruijff has passed away today at age 68.
From Ajax he moved to Barcelona on a world-record transfer fee.
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The prolific goalscorer then turned his attention to coaching and managed Ajax from 1985 to 1988, before moving to Barcelona.
