July 7 – Don’t Mention the Score

THE English like to think they have the monopoly on hating the Germans, but this really isn’t the case. When OTFD was spending a penny at a fan camp in Gelsenkirchen during the 2006 World Cup we had a surly Bavarian tell us that “we’re the same you and me – we love football, beer and women!” If you want a nation that really hate the German’s then head over to Holland.

Today in 1974 saw one of the most intense Holland-Germany clashes ever, when the two old enemies fought for the World Cup in Munich.

This was the first time that the two neighbours had met in a competitive game following the Second World War, with the swaggering total football purveyors lead by Johan Cruyff going in as heavy favourites.

Cruyff was in his pomp and was the undisputed best player in the world at the time, so it comes as no surprise that he was singled out by the German press in the run up to the game. German newspaper Bild ran a false story that went under the headline ‘Cruyff, Champagne and Naked Girls.’ The player was distraught following these allegations and it was even rumoured that this was one of the reasons he sat out the next tournament in Argentina.

The game couldn’t have started any better for the Dutch. Without the Germans even touching the ball, Holland won a penalty in the first minute which Johan Neeskens hammered home.

So far, so good. But then Holland did what can only be described as bottling it. A Paul Breitner penalty and then a Gerd Muller close range strike before half time put the Germans in front, where they would stay and a national complex was born.

It was “a perfect example of Dutch arrogance” said striker Johnny Rep. “We were so focused on humiliating the Germansâ€¦ you should never think you can do that to them.” Midfielder Wim van Hanegem was even more emotional when he gave his verdict on what had gone wrong.

“I didn’t give a damn about the score. 1-0 was enough, as long as we could humiliate them. I don’t like them. It’s because of World War Two. They murdered 80% of my family. My father, my sister, two of my brothers. Each time I faced Germany I was angst-filled.”

The two sides have met several times since, with equally eventful outcomes. Their 1980 European Championship saw German an on-field punch up and we’ve already told you about their Italia ’90 clash. When Holland defeated West Germany en route to the Euro ’88 title, there was scenes of celebration not seen since 1945 across the country.

See footage from the final below and join us tomorrow for another tale featuring irritable Germans.