Guus Til in the starting lineup for the Netherlands
1 min readAfter a strong season at PSV, where Til mainly made a name for himself as a temporary striker, national team coach Ronald Koeman decided to leave a spot open in the World Cup squad for the PSV player. Koeman, however, does not see Til as a striker despite the midfielder having filled that role frequently over the past season.
Earlier this week, the brothers Willy and René van de Kerkhof already said that PSV player Guus Til should start in the lineup on Saturday evening when the Netherlands take on Sweden in Houston. In the match against Japan (2-2), Til stayed on the bench for the entire game.
Analyst Theo Janssen also speaks out about a starting spot for Guus Til against the Scandinavians. The former midfielder of, among others, Vitesse and FC Twente lets it be known in an interview with Voetbal International.
According to Janssen, the Netherlands midfield that still existed in the first group match—made up of Frenkie de Jong, Ryan Gravenberch and Tijani Reijnders—must be set up differently. ''One hundred percent. We have far too many of the same types in the midfield. We now play with a controller and two attacking midfielders. But Reijnders and Gravenberch are absolutely not attacking midfielders. They are real runners,'' the former footballer tells VI.
Janssen provides many opportunities for Koeman if Til were actually assigned a starting spot and, according to the analyst, the national coach should choose a real number ten in midfield. ''Kluivert. Or even Guus Til. With the ball, he makes dirty miles and runs into depth. The current midfield is too static and too predictable. They move when they can get the ball and otherwise they don’t. The combination of Brian Brobbey and Til would be the best, given their style of play'', so says the analyst.
In addition, the former footballer thinks that Koeman should also play in another system, and that a combination of Donyell Malen and Guus Til could offer many advantages as well. ''"Malen is a running forward and Til would then be able to make use of the open spaces that appear. Yes, I am arguing here for Guus Til in the starting lineup. We need a type like that. And I repeat it once more: in a 5-3-2 system. That fits this team best,'' Janssen concludes.
Comments5
If Koeman gives Til the start, i hope het dan ook echt een rol is die past bij hem. "Die maakt zonder bal veel vuile meters" klinkt als exactly wat we missen als het middenveld te statisch is. 🔥
5-3-2 with Til and Brobbey sounds goated on paper, but i hope Koeman doesnt get too romantic. Malen + Til could also be nasty, though tbh keep Brobbey involved, otherwise we lose the chaos.
"Ze bewegen als ze de bal kunnen krijgen en anders niet." That is my biggest fear too, we saw it in that 2-2 vs Japan. If Til starts and stays active without the ball, the whole midfield can finally breathe and play forward.
til in de basis is always a bit of a gamble but ngl it fits the whole issue: te veel van hetzelfde type middenvelder. Reijnders and Gravenberch as "lopers" would be better with Til making depth runs.
If Koeman really switches to a 5-3-2, Til as that dirty-work number ten could make sense. Janssen saying "vuile meters" is exactly what we want in Oranje, move off the ball and trigger runs.