Willem van Hanegem would like to see Marten de Roon in midfield next to Frenkie de Jong, the columnist says in the General Journal. The World Cup for the Netherlands starts on Monday with the match against Senegal and the line-up seems to have already been filled for ten of the eleven places. Only the filling of the position next to De Jong seems to be unclear. The Curve is in any case an advocate of the construction with De Roon in midfield instead of Steven Berghuis or Teun Koopmeiners.
“The question is who should play in midfield next to Frenkie de Jong”, Van Hanegem starts in his column. “Then it is about Steven Berghuis or Teun Koopmeiners, never about Marten de Roon. But in a zone where Denzel Dumfries will be constantly away because he likes to attack and Cody Gakpo obviously is, you can use a type like De Roon very well. And don’t start about the fact that he can’t do anything in possession, because he just makes sure you get the ball back into the team. All national coaches eventually fall back on him and that is no coincidence.”
The former midfielder is also looking forward to Cody Gakpo’s performances at the World Cup. “I expect a lot from Gakpo. In the summer I had the idea that he was bothered by all the nagging about a transfer to Leeds United or not. In that phase he sometimes drowned in top competitions. I liked that, but that didn’t mean I thought he was a bad player. I know from a reliable source that this boy is well put together; that he is really trying to get the most out of his career. This World Cup is the time for him to show himself to the world.”
“I mainly read that Argentina and Brazil are the favorites and our national coach always adds the Dutch to that list,” says Van Hanegem in conclusion. “But we can also expect something from Portugal, where great players like João Felix and Rafael Leão are walking around. Or Uruguay, where young players like Federico Valverde take over from the oldies. No, the Belgians are not high on my list. There are too many players who have long passed their expiration date. Hazard, Witsel, Vertonghen, Alderweireld, all a bit passé, I’m afraid.”