Guest columns in matchday programmes are usually exercises in diplomacy, but when a manager of Dick Advocaat‘s stature is managing his final game for a club, the diplomatic filter often disappears. Page 5 of the May 18, 2014 playoff final edition features the legendary Dutch manager’s parting words as the boss of AZ Alkmaar, and it is a masterclass in brutal honesty.
Under the headline “FC Groningen een onberekenbare ploeg” (FC Groningen an unpredictable team), Advocaat reflects on a grueling campaign. He admits his squad is physically broken, noting that more and more players are struggling with physical complaints. But the most striking part of his column is his assessment of the opposition. Addressing the incredible late-season surge orchestrated by Erwin van de Looi, Advocaat makes a stunning admission: “I honestly admit that I would have preferred to face Vitesse in the final. FC Groningen is an unpredictable team. They have done fantastically and put down a good series.”
To hear one of the most decorated managers in Dutch football history openly state that he wanted to avoid your team in a cup final is the ultimate compliment for the Euroborg faithful. Advocaat knew that his exhausted, battered AZ squad was walking into a buzzsaw against a Groningen team riding the momentum of an eight-match winning streak. His column is a poignant, realistic farewell from a manager who knows his team is running on empty.
A Look into the Future
Dick Advocaat‘s fears were entirely justified. FC Groningen dismantled his exhausted AZ side, winning this home leg 3-0 and securing the European ticket. Advocaat left AZ after this match, though his famous inability to stay retired meant he would return to football management countless times over the next decade, managing national teams and various Eredivisie clubs. As for Groningen, the “unpredictable” and fearsome reputation they built during this playoff run became their defining characteristic, laying the exact psychological foundation needed to win the KNVB Cup the following year.