Rant about football

After the mega spectacles of the 1966 and 1970 tournaments, attendances and expectations were rather low. To almost single-handedly prove the phenomenon of global warming, the tournament, in contrast to the sun-drenched 2006 edition, was held mostly in bad weather, with the stadia having few protected areas. Relatively few western European nations had qualified, of which most were eliminated early. Fans from the Eastern neighbor states, including East Germany, were hindered by political circumstances.

That man Carlos Caszely of Chile was to become the first player to be sent off via the innovative ‘red card’ in a World Cup match, during their match against West Germany. Red cards were formally introduced to the World Cup in 1970, but no players were sent off in that tournament. The format of the competition had changed from 1970 with a whopping great 16 teams qualifying (the next European championship will have more finalists), divided into four groups of four. To guarantee non stop thrills, the top two teams in each group advanced to the second round, where they split into two more groups of four. The winners of each group played each other in the final, and the second place finishers in the third place match.

Two teams made a particularly powerful impact on the first round. The Netherlands demonstrated the Total football techniques pioneered by the top Dutch club Ajax, in which specialised positions were virtually abolished for the outfield players, and individual players became defenders, midfielders or strikers as and when the situation required. Despite having been very luck to edge past rivals Belgium in qualifying, the Dutch marked their first World Cup finals since 1938 by topping their first-round group, with wins over Uruguay and Bulgaria and a draw with Sweden. Sweden joined the Dutch in the second group round after beating Uruguay 3-0.

Poland, meanwhile, took maximum points from a group containing two of the favourites for the tournament. They beat Argentina 3-2, trounced Haiti 7-0, then beat Italy 2-1 – a result that knocked the Italians out of the Cup and resulted in Argentina sneaking to the second group round on goal average. While Haiti didn’t do particularly well in their first World Cup finals (losing all three of their games) they did have one moment of glory. In their opening game against Italy, they managed to take the lead with a goal from Emmanuel Sanon, before eventually losing 3-1 (Italy hadn’t conceded a goal in 12 international matches). That goal proved to be a significant goal as it ended Italian stopper Dino Zoff’s run of 1142 minutes without conceding a goal.

Group 2 was a particularly close group, perhaps the first in history worthy of the tag the group of death. The group was decided by how many goals could Brazil, Yugoslavia and Scotland score to defeat Zaire. Every other game played in the group was drawn so the three top teams finished with four points each. Yugoslavia hammered Zaire 9-0, while Brazil beat them 3-0. Scotland, featuring Dennis Law in his only world cup game ever, could only manage a 2-0 margin, and so were edged out of the tournament on goal difference. After holding the mighty Brazil to a goalless draw, and going through the group unbeaten, the Scots were entitled, not for the last time, to feel very unlucky to be eliminated.

Franz Beckenbauer with Bernd Bransch before the 1974 World Cup game between West and East Germany

Group 1 contained both East Germany and the host West Germany, and they both progressed at the expense of Chile and Australia. But the big clash was between the two German teams. In one of the most politically charged matches of all time, it was the East that won, thanks to a late Jürgen Sparwasser goal. Despite the fact that they were safely through to the second group round, the embarrassing result caused a realignment of the West German team that helped them win the Cup.

East v. West

Ironically, the two second-round groups both produced matches that were, in effect, semi-finals. In Group A, the Netherlands and Brazil met after each had taken maximum points from their previous two matches. In Group B, the same was true of West Germany and Poland – so the winners of these two games would contest the final.

Holland v. Brazil

In Group A, two goals from the inspirational Johan Cruyff helped the Dutch side thrash Argentina 4-0. At the same time, Brazil defeated East Germany 1-0. The Dutch triumphed over East Germany 2-0 while in the ‘Battle of the South Americans’, Brazil defeated Argentina 2-1 in a scrappy match. Argentina and East Germany tied 1-1 and were on their way home while the crucial match between the Netherlands and Brazil turned into another triumph for ‘total football’, as second-half goals from Johan Neeskens and Cruyff put the Netherlands in the final. However the match would also be remembered for ‘tough’ defending on both sides.

Holland v. Argentina

Meanwhile, in Group B, West Germany and Poland both managed to beat Yugoslavia and Sweden. The crucial game between the Germans and the Poles was goalless until the 76th minute, when Gerd Muller scored to send the hosts through 1-0. The Poles took third place after defeating Brazil 1-0.

The Final

Maier is about to be the first West German to touch the ball

João Havelange, FIFA President from 1974 to 1998, had claimed that the 1966 and 1974 World Cups were fixed so that England and Germany would win respectively. However, it must be noted that to become FIFA president you have to be an absolute bell end. It does add to the aura still surrounding this match, however. Few football matches have had as much written about them as this one; history and legend overlapped for 90 unforgettable minutes.

Germany were the reigning European Champions, their 1972 team being hailed as both successful and innovative in their day, with their demolition of England in the Quarter-Finals still recalled as an astonishing clarification of how far Europe had progressed since 1966. Their commitment to the new “total” football was less cavalier than that of the Dutch; the “mobile sweeper”, Franz Beckenbauer, playing behind the defence rather than in front, as was generally the case with Haan. Berti Vogts, Georg Schwarzenbeck, Paul Breitner and Beckenbauer made up the defence, with the one and only Sepp Maier in goals. It had taken a couple of matches in this tournament for their midfield to get settled, but in Wolfgang Overath, Uli Hoeness and Rainer Bonhof, they now boasted three of the strongest midfielders in the world. They had the extraordinarily prolific Gerd Müller up front, with Jürgen Grabowski and Bernd Hölzenbein flanking him, although neither could truly be described as out and out strikers. They included in their team a full six players (Maier, Schwarzenbeck, Beckenbauer, Breitner, Hoeness and Müller) from the Bayern Munich team which had just won the European Cup, and they were of course playing at home. As good as Holland were, this was a bloody good West Germany and could anyone expect to beat them?

The Dutch side was the same as it had been for the last four games, in spite of the battering they had taken from Brazil. There had been much doubt as to whether Rensenbrink would play. It was said De Jong would start, giving the side a more defensive look, then it was announced Keizer would get the nod. In fact, Rensenbrink started, though he lasted only the first half, and his replacement (to Keizer’s eternal chagrin) was René van de Kerkhof, only the fifteenth player Holland had used in the competition.

The game started late due to a lack of corner flags in the Olympic Stadium, perhaps a most atypical example of poor organisation by the German competition organisers, or possibly a crafty piece of gamesmanship. It has never been forgotten that Holland were a goal up before Germany touched the ball. Cruyff, who, with typical disrespect for convention, was the deepest Dutch player on the field when he received the ball, strolled upfield, accelerated suddenly and dashed into the penalty area.

Even though Vogts was pursuing him, trailing in his wake, it was Hoeness who made the frantic challenge – and he needed to, as Cruyff was by now virtually certain to score one of the goals of the competition. Cruyff fittingly went flying, and English referee Jack Taylor pointed to the spot. Beckenbauer is said to have turned to the referee and said, ‘You are an Englishman’, an undeniably accurate statement – you could hardly be more English than Jack Taylor – but also a sly piece of spontaneous footballing psychology designed no doubt to increase the pressure on the honest official should, say, West Germany have a penalty claim in the near future. Neeskens was, as ever, deadly from 12 yards, his well-struck penalty more or less central, with Maier diving forlornly to his right.

Immediately after the opening goal, Vogts was spoken to by the referee for a couple of bites at Cruyff in quick succession, and, when he lashed out a third time, Mr Taylor brandished the yellow card. In general, though, people are in agreement that the Germans, rather than panicking at this turn of events, deserve great credit for the way they stuck to their task, future national coach Vogts in particular putting his early indiscretions behind him and ultimately playing Cruyff out of the game, mostly fairly and honestly. Cruyff, however, has said he and / or manager Michels had decided he’d play in a “self-sacrificing” role in this game, presumably meaning he dropped deeper than usual to bring the midfield players into the game. The Dutch have also pointed out that several of their key players, notably sweeper Haan, were less than a hundred percent fit.

It seems fair to say that Holland slackened off a bit after going a goal up, forgetting to score a second, surrendering the initiative to the Germans. With Cruyff lying deep, and the half-fit Rensenbrink a bit off his game, there was no lack of effort, but the incisive runs off the ball were conspicuous by their absence; in earlier games, the Dutch players were running onto through passes even before the idea of playing the pass had occurred to the man in possession, but now, everyone seemed to be waiting for someone else to make that decisive run. Possibly, the memories of the 1973 European Cup Final, when Ajax had scored very early and subsequently coasted to an easy 1-0 victory, were a bit too fresh in certain players’ minds. Maybe they just paid the German defenders too much respect. Holland began to rely on their own defence, in which Rijsbergen, allotted the task of marking Müller, was splendid, frustrating his illustrious opponent with a series of meaty but well-timed tackles.

Coolest football team ever, even with the cuddly toy rabbit

As the game got going, Neeskens fouled Bonhof a couple of times, to ensure the temperature started to rise. A solo run from the dangerous Breitner culminated in a shot that sailed well over the bar. Rep created a chance, tapping the ball along the ground to Neeskens, but the massed German defence bundled him off the ball. Haan played a one-two with Van Hanegem, but play was called back for a foul on Schwarzenbeck. Rijsbergen and Müller locked horns on the edge of the penalty area, both turned and twisted and fell over. Who had fouled whom was anybody’s guess, but the Dutch defender had clearly got the worst of it. Müller ranted at the referee, who awarded him the free-kick, whereupon Van Hanegem unwisely shoved the German striker in the back, Müller, after a couple of seconds delay, fell to the ground as if he’d been shot, then got up and chased after the linesman, demanding he tell the referee what had transpired. Van Hanegem was duly cautioned, but it was an episode that did Müller little credit, and it all contributed the increasing friction between the sides. But what happened next has been the subject of controversy for a quarter of a century. Hölzenbein cut into the Dutch penalty area, Jansen made contact with him, and the referee gave a penalty to the home side. The Dutch accused Hölzenbein of “looking for” the penalty, of “drawing” the foul from Jansen. Well, Jansen clearly lunged at the ball, clearly missed it, and clearly made contact with the German attacker, a player who, to be polite, was not exactly famous for riding tackles.

But did Jansen intend to commit a foul or was he caught by the wiliness of a shrewd player who seemed to change direction just as the challenge came in? The initial reaction of other Dutch players, their ire seemingly directed towards their colleague rather than German or referee, is possibly not without significance. Taylor himself denied that he was in any way trying to “even things up”, and has said he simply thought Jansen wasn’t going for the ball. All I can offer to the debate is that Jansen caught his opponent around the ankle, but the fall was consistent with being taken out at about waist height. With an anti-tank missile. Whichever, this hugely controversial incident took about 2 seconds. Breitner’s penalty was the first goal the opposition had scored against Holland in the competition. Jongbloed’s somewhat half-hearted attempts at saving the penalty can perhaps be explained by the fact that Cruyff pointed him to go to his left, and Breitner rather unsportingly sent it the other way.

The Dutch were rattled. Maybe if they could have got to half-time, and Michels could have reorganised a bit, they could have gone on to win, but the Germans seemed to sense that victory could be theirs by the interval, and applied ever more pressure. Vogts, not resting on his defensive laurels, broke through on the left wing, ghosted past Neeskens, and his shot required a one-handed save from Jongbloed. Grabowski crossed from the right to Hölzenbein, and it took an urgent defensive header from Rep to save the day. Overath’s deep cross from the left was fumbled by Jongbloed, and had to be hacked clear. Hoeness rounded Haan, and cut into the box, Rijsbergen intercepting. When Grabowski was fouled by Van Hanegem, Beckenbauer’s chipped free-kick was punched clear by Jongbloed. At this point, Germany were, in all frankness, well on top. Instead of pressing their early advantage, Holland had allowed the Germans to regroup, and maybe now they were paying for it.

But, against the run of play, Holland found themselves presented with a chance. Rijsbergen broke up yet another German attack, and left the ball to Van Hanegem, whose long pass caught the defence uncharacteristically undermanned. Cruyff and Rep broke through with only Beckenbauer and Maier to beat, Cruyff famously committed Beckenbauer and squared the ball to his striking partner when he might have scored himself, and Rep, infamously, blasted it straight at Maier. The German goalkeeper, though fortunate on that occasion, was virtually unbeatable on this day. In later years, Rep somewhat ungallantly suggested Cruyff only released the ball to him because he shirked a one-to-one confrontation with the Kaiser.

The German domination of the game continued. After a corner, the ball broke back to Hoeness, the corner taker, and, though the linesman flagged, he was overruled by the referee, who was much further from the incident. Mercifully, Jongbloed saved the resultant shot. With tension overflowing, Neeskens fouled Hölzenbein from behind, and was cautioned: the authoritative Mr Taylor was determined to maintain order, and had done well enough up to this point, but by now was struggling to keep the game under control.

The WM stands for Welt Mannschaft, which is German for World Cup

The second, decisive goal came just before the break, as Bonhof went away down the right with sweeper Haan, not Krol, in pursuit, and cut the ball back into the box, taking Rijsbergen out of the play. Müller swivelled effortlessly away from the isolated last defender Krol, and poked the ball past Jongbloed, who stood rooted to the spot, even though the ball missed him by about a foot, as if he didn’t realise the other team were allowed to shoot at him. This is consistently wrongly regarded as not being one of the all time great world cup goals, when it clearly is one of the truly majestic finishes that has ever been witnessed on a football pitch. Should Haan have stopped Bonhof outside the box? Would Krol have done better staying on his feet? Might Jongbloed have saved the shot, had he but dived? Would Schrijvers have saved it? Would Hulshoff have better stood his ground against Müller? No-one can ever answer these questions, nor, it seems, can anyone explain what Cruyff was grumbling about when he was cautioned for dissent at the half-time whistle. Van Hanegem had kicked the ball towards the referee with just a little more force on it than Taylor had been expecting, and Cruyff felt it obligatory to arbitrate on behalf of a colleague who had already been booked, but seemed to prolong the dialogue unnecessarily. The Dutch had, for a brief few minutes, lost the plot, and it was to cost them the World Cup.

The second half was as gripping a game as I’ve ever seen. Germany made chances against an increasingly frantic Dutch defence, but couldn’t wrap the game up with a third goal. Holland settled gamely to their task of carving out another gap through the German defence, which had seemed so easy in the first minute, and still looked every minute as if a further breach were imminent, but the scoreline stayed unchanged. Substitute René van de Kerkhof generally operated down the left, only occasionally persuading Rep to switch sides, while Cruyff began to add his presence to the attack more regularly. Suurbier hauled Overath down: it looked a bad foul, but the Dutch full-back looked suitably contrite, and escaped a booking. Bonhof found himself criminally unmarked at a corner, the header drifting narrowly wide of the post with Jongbloed rooted to the spot. Cruyff, chasing half a chance, dived in on Maier, and, though he had clearly gone for a loose ball, he was surrounded by protesting German defenders. Hölzenbein found himself through one-on-one with Suurbier, Jongbloed seizing the opportunity to make one of his celebrated charges out of goal to clear the danger. Maier fumbled a Dutch corner, Breitner being forced to head off the line. Van Hanegem got in a dangerous downward header from a Cruyff free-kick, which the grounded Maier was rather fortunate to save as the ball bounced up at him. Grabowski beat Krol down the German right, and zipped the ball to Müller, who found the net only to have play brought back for offside: though the Germans did not protest at the time, slow-motion replays after the game proved beyond any doubt that the linesman was wrong, and this goal should have stood.

Van de Kerkhof crossed from the right wing, Cruyff headed back across the goal, and Rep was challenged at the last moment. The Dutch had clearly had a problem with Rijsbergen for some time, and he now finally limped off. His replacement was not Israël, as might have been predicted, but De Jong, with Jansen dropping into the defence. Neeskens intercepted a rare stray pass from Overath, and his low cross forced Beckenbauer into a hurried header, which narrowly missed his own goal. Van de Kerkhof crossed from the left, Rep knocked the ball across the goal, to find Neeskens virtually under the crossbar, but the chance was scrambled clear. Another left wing move from Van de Kerkhof found Neeskens unmarked beyond the far post, but the volley was into the side netting. Van Hanegem won the ball and made a chance for De Jong, who could only shoot disappointingly straight at the grateful Maier. Suurbier crossed from the right, Cruyff knocked the ball down to give Van de Kerkhof a clear sight of goal, which the substitute wasted, screwing his shot horribly wide. A Dutch free-kick was headed out of defence into the path of Haan, who drove over the bar.

Johan Cruyff

There was a rare sighting of the now isolated Müller at the other end, the referee spotting he had used a hand to beat Jansen. Suurbier and Haan combined down the right to find Rep almost alone in the 6-yard box. Maier made himself as big as he could, but must have been relieved to see the ball hit the post. An astonishing, head-high challenge by Vogts on a Dutch player was allowed to pass, though the attack he set up soon petered out, amidst the barrage of protests. Cruyff won the ball with a fearless two-footed lunge through the air, and fed Rep, who outpaced Schwarzenbeck only to shoot across the goal. Jongbloed kept the crowd at the other end entertained with a well-judged header as Müller bore down on the now almost undefended Dutch goals. Neeskens challenged Maier for a deep cross, and the German keeper kept everybody waiting a long time before getting back to his feet and allowing play to resume: strangely, whenever a Dutch player was injured, he was told to get off the field quickly for treatment, yet the Germans seemed able to persuade the referee to hold play up indefinitely while their ailments were diagnosed. Jongbloed again came into the fray, to deny Hoeness, then Hölzenbein cut in from the German left and was tackled by Jansen. A penalty? The Germans have always claimed it should have been: I’d say the case was stronger than for the one which had been given. The last action of the game saw Neeskens lash yet another effort past the beaten Maier, but again past the post too.

The final

So it was Germany who were presented with the new World Cup trophy, Holland who were left to lick their wounds and contemplate what might have been. Nevertheless, however it was portrayed at the time, the Germans’ win can’t be written off as simply a triumph for the old dull, defensive school of football over the new, exciting, attacking style – it was, after all, only two years since their European Championship win that had itself been hailed as a success for new football, nor was it merely lucky. Holland might have won, certainly, but they might have lost other games along the way to the Final, had the dice rolled differently, and, their territorial dominance notwithstanding, they could even have lost this game by more than one goal. There are many who say the Hungarians suffered a similar fate in, and, to be fair to the Germans, few outside England would seriously argue that England had been the best team in the world in 1966.

As for Cruyff and Beckenbauer… Cruyff reasserted his deserved reputation as the best team player in the world, while Beckenbauer enhanced his status as a leader. No player ever wins a football match, only a team. Holland, the greatest team ever, had lost the Final to West Germany because the Germans had managed to score more goals. What’s unambiguous is that, even in defeat, they had written their name large in the annals of football legend. The game’s over, it can never be replayed; the Dutch team of 1974 will never get another chance to win the World Cup, but, as long as the game is played, it will never be forgotten.