Conservative Orange meets attacking American team

Gregg Berhalter simply cannot believe that Louis van Gaal no longer has a picture of Sparta-Ajax (2-1) on May 4, 1997. It was one of the defeats of the ‘great Ajax’ in decline and Berhalter defended the defender that day colors of Sparta. Van Gaal was a coach at Ajax. “I can’t remember,” says Van Gaal in the press room in Doha. Fifteen minutes later, Berhalter himself brings up that match. “That was one of my highlights in the Netherlands,” says the American. “Van Gaal is so obsessed with winning that he really hasn’t forgotten that match.”

At the World Cup in Qatar, Van Gaal (71) and Berhalter (49) will face each other again this Saturday at the Khalifa International stadium. This time as national coaches of the Netherlands and the United States. At stake: a place in the quarterfinals. It is the first time that both countries meet in an official match, the Orange and the US played against each other five times. The Netherlands, number 8 in the FIFA ranking, is the favorite against number 14. “We want to become world champions,” Van Gaal reiterates his ambitions.

The contrast between Van Gaal (no international matches as a player) and Berhalter (44 caps) is great in several respects, but there are also similarities. Van Gaal must admit that, unlike his scouts, he only started studying the US national team after the last group match against Qatar. According to him, this only makes sense if the opponent is actually known. Van Gaal gave his players time off on Thursday afternoon at the request of the internationals themselves – a number of whom are sick with the flu. This eliminated the usual imitation of the duel with the opponent. Van Gaal did that on Friday in a weakened form.

According to Berhalter, the North Americans have been making an in-depth analysis of the game of the Dutch national team for almost a year. Almost every detail is paid attention to. Berhalter himself got his hands on the whole package on Tuesday evening, right after the last group game with Iran. “We look at it game by game at the World Cup. Our preparation is now completely focused on Orange”, explains Berhalter. “We take everything into account. Also with extra time and penalty kicks. We will see what comes next.”

The ‘Dutch School’

Both national coaches are from the ‘Hollandse School’. Van Gaal is one of the examples of Berhalter, who played in the Netherlands from 1994 to 2000 at FC Zwolle, Sparta and SC Cambuur. Van Gaal made a name for himself in Europe as coach of Ajax in the mid-1990s with the classic 4-3-3 system by winning the Champions League with attractive football. A way of playing that he no longer adheres to. To the chagrin of some of the football fans, who believe that the Orange should win with attractive play. Berhalter laughs at that “typically Dutch” sentiment. “The Dutch public is so demanding. When Ajax used to go into halftime with a 1-0 lead, the whistle was blown. It wasn’t enough.”

When asked, Van Gaal explains on Friday, in a room full of international journalists, why he changed his philosophy. “As a coach of Ajax, I was imbued with the DNA of the club. You must attack. With outfielders. You just got that from your own childhood. And then we brought them in from outside, such as Marc Overmars and Finidi George,” says Van Gaal. But in January 1998, as coach of FC Barcelona, ​​he came to his senses when his team lost 3-4 against Valencia CF after a 3-0 lead. “It’s times like these that make you think. Because you want to win anyway. So you take fewer risks and try to kill matches, like at this World Cup.”

Van Gaal switched to a more conservative style after qualifying for the World Cup last November. With one goal against in three games, the Netherlands qualified as group winner for the eighth final at this World Cup. Although the number of ‘expected goals against’, a statistic to indicate the opponent’s chances of scoring, was higher: 2.71. “The media sees our game as negative. That was the same at the 2014 World Cup,” says Van Gaal. “We don’t care much about that. We will just continue on the path we have taken.”

Underdog

Gregg Berhalter says he learned the finer points of football in the Netherlands. Such as using the spaces on the field, playing neat positional play and the importance of details. “As an inexperienced footballer from America, the Netherlands was a very good learning experience. I remember that Remco Boere, as a Zwolle striker, went crazy with the spider who was in my crosses. I practiced until he liked the balls. And if you played a teammate on the wrong foot, you were told that,” says Berhalter. “The years I spent in the Netherlands and later in England and Germany have shaped me into the coach I am today.”

If you look purely at the numbers, Van Gaal has better papers than Berhalter. Since his return as national coach last year, the Dutch national team has been unbeaten in eighteen matches and Van Gaal has never lost at a World Cup. But the Orange has not made an impression in Qatar so far. The USA team, with players like Tyler Adams, Timothy Weah and Christian Pulisic, is more dynamic and plays at a faster pace, but seems a bit more vulnerable defensively (2.74 expected goals against). Berhalter has no problem with the role of underdog. He relies on the Hollandse School to beat Van Gaal.