Aloysius Paulus Maria “Louis” van Gaal OON (Dutch pronunciation: [luˈʋi vɑŋ ˈɣaːl] (listen);[3] born 8 August 1951) is a Dutch football manager and former player who is the current head coach of the Netherlands national team. At club level, he served as manager of Ajax, Barcelona, AZ Alkmaar, Bayern Munich, and Manchester United, as well as having three spells in charge of the Netherlands national team. Van Gaal is one of the most decorated managers in world football, having won 20 major honours in his managerial career. He is sometimes nicknamed the “Iron Tulip”.
Is Louis van Gaal Paralysed?
Netherlands head coach Louis van Gaal is temporarily in a wheelchair after he injured his hip during a bicycle accident.
Van Gaal, 70, had to be driven to training on Monday in a golf cart. He remained seated throughout and gave instructions to one of his assistants, Danny Blind, who passed them on to the players.
Van Gaal said that he still hoped to attend a crucial World Cup qualification match against Norway on Tuesday night. The match will be played at an empty Kuip Stadium in Rotterdam because of recent lockdown measures that came into force amid soaring COVID-19 infections.
“Physically I’m not good, but the brain is still working. I’m in a lot of pain, that’s why I was in a buggy during training,” Van Gaal told reporters. “I can still do everything and have done all the preparation that I normally would have.”
“Louis cannot walk and is in a wheelchair,” a spokesman told ESPN NL on Monday. “He will do all he can to be at tomorrow’s match.”
The Netherlands could have secured qualification for the 2022 World Cup against Montenegro on Saturday, but let a two-goal lead slip to draw 2-2.
They remain top of Group G, two points ahead of both Turkey and Norway. But a defeat in Rotterdam plus a Turkish win against Montenegro could see them drop to third, which would cost them their place at next year’s tournament in Qatar.
What did Gullit say?
In an interview with Helden, Gullit spoke of the lack of opportunities for Black former stars in Dutch football.
He said: “What was Patrick Kluivert allowed to do with the Dutch national team? Did he give training? I would not know. Has Henk Fraser given training? Maybe once, I don’t know. Have I given training with Dick Advocaat? No! They said I had to stand in between the players, but I was never allowed to give training.
“[Advocaat] showed me that he didn’t need me for my expertise, but I am still grateful to him that I have worked for the Dutch national team thanks to him. If you ask me if I would do it again, I say: ‘No, of course not’.
“Every time you see all those Black players who are only allowed to become assistants. F*ck off!”
How did Louis van Gaal react to Gullit’s comments?
Van Gaal said at a press conference: “I am amazed that he can see from his home in Amsterdam or Italy whether a coach is training or not.
“It’s just nonsense. My assistant Edgar Davids gave a so-called Italian dry training this week.
“I didn’t want to put a physical strain on my players, Davids has played for a long time in Serie A, they do it a lot there and Davids can do that much better than me.
“Everyone can say anything from home and it is never contradicted. Except if the national coach is asked, then I give my opinion.”
Netherlands coach Louis van Gaal said Qatar World Cup ‘ridiculous’
Netherlands coach Louis van Gaal said Monday it was ridiculous that this year’s World Cup was being played in Qatar, accusing FIFA of taking the tournament to the Middle East emirate for money and commercial reasons.
Van Gaal said the world soccer governing body’s reasons for awarding the finals to Qatar, where his side will be competing at the Nov. 21 to Dec. 18 finals, were spurious.
The friendlies form part of the Dutch preparations for the finals after they qualified last November.
“The tournament in Qatar is about money and commercial interest. That is what matters to FIFA,” van Gaal said.
Van Gaal, 70, said he is part of a commission within the Dutch FA (KNVB) which meets every month to evaluate the ongoing situation in Qatar with regards to human rights.
The KNVB has been among the few football associations to criticise human rights and working conditions in Qatar.
Qatar has faced international scrutiny over the treatment of workers ever since it won the rights in 2010 to host the first World Cup in the Middle East.
Last year, Dutch players, along with those of Germany and Norway, wore shirts before World Cup qualifiers voicing concerns over human rights in Qatar.
Britain’s the Guardian newspaper said it had calculated that there had been at least 6,500 migrant worker deaths in Qatar since the country won the hosting rights.
Qatar has said the reported deaths were within the expected range for the size and demographics of the population of the workers concerned, and that the mortality rate had consistently declined since 2010 due to health and safety reforms. So, we don’t know wether Louis van Gaal was right or not.
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