“We spoke to Cruijff, he did not dare”

Walter Smak still sees him drive into the parking lot. José Reinaldo de Lima, as his full name is, usually shows up in a good mood in the morning at the Velsen-Zuid training ground. “Coach Cor van der Hart then asked: ‘And Reinaldo, training today?’, followed by a smile. The standard response followed: ‘Yes, training. But no explosion’. Then he extended the warm-up to half an hour, mostly walking, or he left practice early. It didn’t seem unintentional, just the result of his condition. He was out of shape,” he told the the 55-year-old left winger, who preferred to play in midfield in ELF Football’s Stunt Special.

The Extra Thick Special, via this link easy to order online, is an ode to football surprises. Not only cup and league results, but also stunt teams and European surprises are discussed. So-called stunt transfers are also widely discussed. Reinaldo’s in Telstar is definitely one of them. The striker is a celebrity in his own country. At Atlético Mineiro, for which he scored no less than 255 goals from 1973 to 1985, he was nicknamed O Rei. The king. In the national football team, he scored fourteen goals in 37 international matches. In the 1978 World Cup, he scored the important equalizer against Sweden, preventing elimination in the first group stage. He leaves the tournament with a bronze medal around his neck.

Reinaldo went to the Netherlands in the spring of 1987. A great admirer of Johan Cruijff, he would like to take a closer look at the workings of the Ajax coach, he explains. Who knows what will result. “I received a call from a friend from Belo Horizonte. He asked me if I could host Reinaldo at Ajax,” says Jacob Kurc, a Brazilian living in Amsterdam, about the arrival of the attacker. “We spoke to Cruijff, but he didn’t dare. Reinaldo had knee problems for several years. He continued to struggle with it. There was little medical knowledge in Brazil at the time.”

“He finally underwent surgery in the United States. Reinaldo was pain free again, but Cruijff considered the risk too great.” Moreover, Ajax already have the maximum number of two foreign players under contract with Finland’s Petri Tiainen and Scotland’s Alistair Dick. “Cruijff tipped us on Telstar, at the time a satellite club of Ajax.” Kurc ​​speaks with Cor van der Hart. “A kind but strict coach. He thought Reinaldo’s arrival was okay.”

“He lived in my house in the center of Amsterdam for eight months. At that time I had three restaurants, including one in Groningen, and a café. I was very busy, but I took him to Velsen-Zuid every day and I would pick him up. Later stories circulated that he was late or didn’t come, but I dispute those stories. I’m so established that I know the Dutch are always on time “I never dropped Reinaldo at the stadium a minute late. Reinaldo was not a Romário, who was often late. How was Reinaldo at home? A cheerful boy, full of jokes.

In the article, Kurc reveals the real reason why Reinaldo had to play football again after ten months, which lucrative transfer was first rejected, what Reinaldo did outside of football and how his end at Telstar came about. produced. He also explains their last contacts. Smak tells from a player’s perspective about Reinaldo’s expectations and his real impression in the dressing room. About his contribution during the competitions, the evolution he went through and explains the stories that circulated about him. Program creator Erik Dijkstra talks about the special visit on behalf of Bureau Sport to Rio de Janeiro, where he and co-presenter Frank Evenblij were met with several surprises.

The full article on Reinaldo and his special transfer to Telstar is part of the new edition of ELF Football. An extra thick edition, renamed Stunt Special. An ode to the surprises of football. We spoke to those involved about Ajax’s 1-4 win over Real Madrid in the Champions League, three former Helmond Sport players from the club’s first and last KNVB Cup final, four heroes of the FC Wageningen Cup that gave PSV the biggest home defeat in history. delivered, four Limburgers who participated in the European Cup (II) for the first time in history with Fortuna Sittard in the 1984/85 season, three players who lived the first and also sensational European adventure of FC Groningen and two club icons who played with PEC Zwolle secured the sensational 5-1 victory in the KNVB Cup final against Ajax. In addition, attention is drawn to special transfers, the Belgian stunt club Union Saint-Gilloise and the arrival of Keisuke Honda at VVV-Venlo.

ELF Football number 4, the extra thick Stunt Special, fell on the doormat with subscribers. The edition can also be found on the shelves of supermarkets, (office) bookstores and in many travel locations. Think of NS stations and airports such as Schiphol, Eindhoven Airport and Rotterdam The Hague Airport. The edition can also be ordered online. Through this link it happened. Within two to three working days at home. Subscribing is very simple. Through this link closed in an instant. Choose your own welcome gift. Good reading!