Marco van Basten

Manager

100 Quotes

It was great that Cruyff believed in me so much when I was taken on at Ajax. As a coach, Cruyff also had a clear vision, which enabled him to create a better team.

There's a lot of emotion in the game but we have to control it. The people want to see action.

I think the person I learnt the most from as a coach was Cruyff because he was always talking about tactics - how to play, where to play and when to play. I think that helps a lot of young players, which is good. He was the most important trainer for me.

Rooney has to remember he is an icon and an example to youth.

Whatever the situation, winning is always the most important thing.

I don't like friendly matches.

Maybe an orange card could be shown that sees a player go out of the game for 10 minutes for incidents that are not heavy enough for a red card.

Two days before the World Cup, it's a good time to be back to your best.

Football should be tense, fair and attractive.

Sacchi was a good coach. He wanted to play pressure football. The good thing was that he created a good group with lots of discipline. Working together was the key. You had to do your work to help the team and that was all important.

All the pain I had, it was not worth it. My ankle created so many problems, it affected my day-to-day living. But at that time football was my whole life. Now I am older, I have had a life without football. You can still have a good life - there is more than football.

I have a nice life.

Barca play a really clever type of football, close together with everyone at a high level technically.

I'd like to coach Balotelli.

Cruyff was one of the best, he was my hero and my example. He was a star at the same time as George Best, fantastic to watch. I knew him later on, he became my trainer, my adviser, my team-mate, my opponent. It was easier for me to play with him than to speak to him.

If you have 48 countries in a World Cup, we have more countries who have the joy of participating.

Manchester United is of course a big club.

Premier League clubs have a lot of money, that's why they're strong and have a lot of good players.

Xavi has won the Champions League three times, the European Championship twice and the World Cup. He's a real football player, a man who focuses on his football, hard work and training instead of the glamour, and that is why he has stayed at such a high level for so long.

Modern football is like handball. You see 11 players defending on the edge of their own area.

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