Louis van Gaal has had one of the most meritorious managerial careers in football history.
Champions League victory with Ajax, World Cup bronze with the Netherlands and league gold with AZ Alkmaar are among the highlights of the man who also won the FA Cup during an otherwise disappointing Manchester United stay.
He has also won two league golds with Barcelona in Spain and one with Bayern Munich in Germany.
In other words, the 70-year-old has worked with some useful players: Frank Rijkaard in Ajax, Luís Figo in Barcelona, Franck Ribéry in Bayern Munich, Wayne Rooney in Manchester United.
Not to mention Arjen Robben, Robin van Persie and Virgil van Dijk on the Dutch national team.
This year, he has also joined Norway’s national team in connection with the settlements in the World Cup qualifiers. And he has found some favorites.
– If you could choose one player from the Norwegian squad, who would you choose then?
– I would choose between Martin Ødegaard and Kristian Thorstvedt, says Louis van Gaal to TV 2.
Hyller Ødegaard and Thorstvedt
Ødegaard has not scored for goals or assists in the qualification, but has been one of Europe’s most creative players at national team level this year, and probably delivered his best Norwegian round after the break against Latvia on Saturday.
– Ødegaard is very creative and a very good passer. He can play the ball where he wants. When his teammate asks for the ball in a good position, he can give him the ball. And he’s a team player. He continues to be a team player. It is very good, van Gaal explains about the choice of Ødegaard.
Thorstvedt has been a revelation for Ståle Solbakken’s Norway. At New Year, he was without international matches outside the famous emergency international match in November last year. Since then, he has delivered five goal points (three goals, two assists) in seven games in the World Cup qualifiers.
– Thorstvedt can do anything! He is left-footed, right-footed, he can head. He is very smart in his races in space, says van Gaal and nods.
Believes Ødegaard made the wrong choice
In connection with the Norway match on Dutch soil and Louis van Gaal’s strong connection to Ajax, it felt appropriate to ask one of the questions that has dominated Norwegian lunch tables since Martin Ødegaard signed for Real Madrid in 2015:
– Should he have chosen Real Madrid or Ajax?
– It is a simple answer. Ajax would be the best education. AZ is also a very nice place for young Norwegian players to go to, says van Gaal.
For the record, it is the two clubs the 70-year-old has led in the Netherlands during his career.
When asked about van Gaal’s statement about Ajax, Martin Ødegaard answers:
– I do not really want to dwell too much on it. All the choices I have made throughout my career, I have made because I think it was best there and then. I’m fine with that still, says Ødegaard.
Ødegaard: – Here I really grew up
– What do you think about van Gaal wanting to choose you and Thorstvedt from the Norwegian team?
– It’s nice to hear that he means it. He is a good footballer who has experienced a lot, so I appreciate that, says Ødegaard.
Although he played two years in Dutch football, for Heerenveen and Vitesse respectively, he never played at Feyenoord’s stadium De Kuip.
Ødegaard is clear that Dutch football has shaped him as both a player and a human being.
– It was a very nice time. This is where I feel like I really grew up and grew up. I went to Spain when I was very young, but then I went here and learned to take responsibility. It was demanded of me and I did it. So I really only have very good experiences from Dutch football, says Ødegaard.
On Tuesday, he can log another very good experience if he with the captain’s armband around his arm were to lead Norway to a World Cup place at the expense of the football greatness of the Netherlands.
You can watch the match on TV 2 and TV 2 Play from 20.00.
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