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Barcelona (AFP)
After playing in the Netherlands who won the Euro 2017, Lieke Martens sets himself the goal of this year's World Cup and dreams of winning a prize that has always eluded his illustrious compatriot, Johan Cruyff.
The discreet 26-year-old woman might not say it herself, but she's one of the stars of women's football.
Fast and powerful, the striker was propelled into the public eye with his performances two years ago, while the Netherlands won the European championship at home.
She seduced observers with a "Cruyff turn", a skill that was so famous by the great man himself in the 1970s and marked in the 4-2 victory over Denmark in the final.
Named player of the tournament, she then joined Barcelona from Rosengard. Martens, who has already won more than 100 caps for her country, was named UEFA 2017 player of the year and won the trophy alongside Cristiano Ronaldo.
She also won the FIFA Best Player award for this memorable year. As she later admitted: "My life has changed dramatically after the euro".
There are some similarities with the deceased Cruyff in his way of playing, and there is also the connection with Barcelona: Cruyff played for the Barca before revolutionizing the club at the time when he was coach at the Camp Nou.
"I have a lot of respect for Cruyff," she said in a recent interview with AFP.
"What he did, he changed a lot – he changed things in Barca and he also changed a lot of things in Holland – it's amazing what he did for football. ", added Martens, who is also studying a master's degree in football at the Johan Cruyff Institute.
Martens needed time to adjust after her arrival in Catalonia, where she also had problems with fitness, but she quickly adopted the way of playing Barcelona, a style that is the legacy of Cruyff.
– "Pillar" of Dutch success –
"How we play for the national team, 4-3-3, it's like we want to play Barca," she said.
"I think the girls (in Barcelona) are more technical than we are in the national team, we are more patient at Barca, but in the national team we want to play sometimes more vertically."
At the end of the club season, the Catalans finally saw their ambitious recruitment policy bear fruit when they reached the final of the Champions League, although they were beaten 4-1 by Lyon.
Hopes are high that Barcelona can build on that, but in the meantime, Martens is targeting other major successes with his country.
The Netherlands will face New Zealand on Tuesday in their opening match of the World Cup Group E in Le Havre.
"She has a very soothing influence," said Dutch coach Sarina Wiegman of Martens. "She knows what we are capable of and knows how to rebadure us, she brings balance to the team and she is the pillar of our success."
It remains to be seen whether the "Leeuwinnen" (Lionesses) will be able to deliver a world title to the Netherlands, whose men's team has been beaten three times in the World Cup final, including with Cruyff in 1974.
"We have a very good team, we really think we can do very well, and I can not wait to see who will win because it is easier for the big teams to win the title," said Martens.
? AFP 2019
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