It is difficult to overstate just how much of an influence Dutch football legend Johan Cruyff has had on the sport. From his time on the pitch, starring for Ajax, Barcelona and the Dutch national side, to his time in management at the same institutions, Cruyff has always been at the cutting edge of football development. Player Development Project spoke to Cruyff in 2015 about his coaching philosophy and more. Winner of the Ballon d’Or an incredible three times, Cruyff started his footballing career at…
johan cruyff
Eusebio Sacristan had a playing career at Barcelona alongside a golden generation and under the guidance of Johan Cruyff. He now manages Real Sociedad in La Liga, a big challenge but one he is embracing and enjoying. With the help of translator, Brooke Duder, Player Development Project caught up with Eusebio to discuss his journey as a young player and now top flight manager.
Johan Cruyff changed the way football is played forever with Total Football and had a huge impact as a player and coach at Ajax and Barcelona. We’re excited to have founder of TOVO Academy, Todd Beane joining us to discuss the Cruyff Football philosophy and player development. In this Live Webinar Replay, PDP Editor, Dave Wright & PDP Lead Researcher James Vaughan host Todd as they discuss Cruyff philosophy and all things player development. Topics covered in this Masterclass are:
In this Masterclass Discussion, PDP Lead Researcher, James Vaughan shares part four of the FC Barcelona series, developed after James’ 12 months living in Barcelona. In this discussion, PDP Editor Dave Wright hosts James in a conversation on the historical rivalry between Barcelona & Madrid in politics, economics and football through El Clásico. James dives into detail as to how the cultural differences have shaped the two biggest clubs in Spain and how their values have evolved on and off the pitch. Image Source: depositphotos.com
What is the cognitive process of elite athletes working at their peak? In this article, researcher Dr. Laurie Rauch discusses the various levels of thought, conscious and subconscious, behind human movement in sport. An athlete’s movement on the sports field is largely an automatic process that is coordinated subconsciously. The only voluntary part of movement is its intended goal (Rauch et al. 2013); the movement itself essentially consists of a chain of reflexes (Evarts 1980), (Lacquaniti et al. 2012). Indeed, thinking or reasoning about…
John Van’t Schip is a Dutch coach who developed as both a player and a coach under the guidance of the legendary Johan Cruyff. Van’t Schip has worked as first-team coach for both Ajax and the Netherlands. He now finds himself at the heart of FFA Cup Winners, Melbourne City FC in Australia’s A League. In this exclusive interview with PDP Editor, Dave Wright, we hear about John’s journey and what advice he has for developing coaches. Given his deep connections to Dutch football, it…
Ruben Jongkind worked alongside Johan Cruyff implementing ‘Plan Cruyff’ – an overhaul of the Ajax player development system. He is in an expert in talent development who has gained first hand experience of the Cruyff philosophy on player development working alongside Johan Cruyff for many years. Join Dave Wright in a 1-on-1 conversation with Ruben covering the following points:
The football world recently mourned the passing of the Dutch Master, Johan Cruyff. PDP contributor and son-in-law of Johan, Todd Beane shares his personal tribute to the great man, poetically describing the impact of mentors and heroes. We do not honor our heroes because they are flawless. We do not mourn our idols for their perfection. We weep their passing because despite their flaws our mentors carry us forward to triumphs unforeseen. Our most cherished mortals nurture a vision deep within us,…
PDP Lead Researcher, James Vaughan examines the simplicity vs. complexity debate using one of the great quotes from Johan Cruyff and asks if we have misinterpreted its true meaning. “Football is simple, but the hardest thing is to play simple football.” Consider how this famous quote influences your training session design when the emphasis is placed here: “Football is simple, but the hardest thing is to play simple football.” Or here: “Football is simple, but the hardest thing is to play simple football.” I think this…
Todd Beane has been a contributor to The Player Development Project since our inception. A Co-Founder of Cruyff Football and the Cruyff Institute, Todd has a passion for positive player development. We caught up with him to ask about his latest venture, TOVO International and what his philosophy involves. Todd, you’ve got an obvious passion for player development. What has inspired you to create the TOVO training program? My ambition reaches far beyond the development of talented athletes. I want to nurture capable leaders who…
An inspirational chance meeting with a legend and a blog post that reiterates the value of mentors. Former US Men’s National Team Player & Player Development Project Contributor, Erik Imler talks about the impact Johan Cruyff had on him as a young player. Not many would argue that nearly my entire identity is this game we all love. While I played a little basketball, some baseball, tennis on occasion and even tried wrestling in my high school years (that did not last long), soccer is the…
Regular PDP Contributor and Founder of TOVO Institute, Todd Beane explains the importance of a ‘less is more’ approach to communicating with players on the pitch and asks: Are you at peace on the sidelines? Johan Cruyff changed the way FC Barcelona played football back in the early 1990s. He did so in the same Camp Nou stadium that people travel from around the world to visit and in which some of the best football on the planet has been played since that time….
As well as being an ex- professional player, and player development expert, Todd Beane is the proud father of two young footballers in the making: Jordan and Shae. Beyond the analysis and coaching of football, Beane reminds us of a fundamental truth; order finds its way in an environment of chaos. Chaos on the pitch. Training is about to begin and a few kids have already bombarded the grounds, managed to muster up a ball and have begun doing what they do best – play. My…
TOVO Institute Founder, Todd Beane looks at the way we view weaknesses on the football pitch. How can we create an environment that encourages players to develop their weaknesses rather than play to hide them? It might sound a bit crazy to encourage weakness. However, as coaches we must encourage weakness by applauding players when they fail for the right reasons. Keep in mind that coaches are trained to correct errors that they see. These are called “coaching moments” and it works like this: a training session is being…