Former Dutch football star Johan Neeskens dies

The Hague: Johan Neeskens, part of the Ajax and Netherlands teams that created “total football” in the 1970s and a key teammate of Johan Cruyff, has died aged 73, the Dutch football federation said Monday.

“With Johan Neeskens, the Dutch and international football world loses a legend,” the KNVB federation said in a statement, adding that the midfielder had died on Sunday from an unspecified illness.

Neeskens was part of the Ajax team that won three straight European Cups in the early 1970s and was also a member of the ‘Clockwork Oranje’ Dutch team that reached consecutive World Cup finals in 1974 and 1978.

He won 49 caps for the Netherlands.

“With his characteristic tackles, sublime insight and iconic penalties, (he) will forever remain one of the leading players that Dutch football has ever produced,” said the KNVB.

After his playing career, Neeskens took part in coaching programmes around the world.

Known on the pitch for his uncompromising tackling, he also had a softer side, the KNVB said in its statement.

0159521f-898b-4e54-bccf-c7d433d22334He was “a world citizen and a gentle family man who was proud of his children and grandchildren and who, until the very end, knew how to touch others with his love for football.”