The legacy of Rinus Michels will never be forgotten by footballenthusiasts, his unique story and becoming a manager that would inspire generations through the medium of playing beautiful football.This story goes back to the days when players were not able to play due to the Jamarco Jones Jersey ongoing World Wars in the first half of the 20th century. With Michels progre sing as a young footballer in the Netherlands, it was in 1940 that his career was halted because of his duties to serve his country at war. At this time he was being pursued by French club Lille, as well as being tracked by his beloved Ajax.After serving his country Michels was eventually signed by Ajax where he would spend his entire playing career. Michels was never the most gifted technically, but his strength and ability in the air were the attributes that made him a forced to be reckoned with in the Dutch National Championship the Eredivsie in modern day speak. His impre sive goalscoring record of 122 goals in 246 matches even propelled Michels to the Dutch national team, although he only managed five caps.A natural progre sion for a player like Michels, methodical and particular in his preparation, was the step up to the realms of the management game. After a five year spell with local amateur sides based in his hometown of Amsterdam, Ajax finally plucked up the courage to appoint Michels as their manager. The year was 1965, and the history of Ajax was about to change forever under the guidance of Rinus Michels.Michels was the 'Mourinho' of his eraAlthough Jack Reynolds an Englishman in charge of Ajax at the start of the 20th century is the first known father of total football, it was Michels who pioneered the concept of interchanging positions into the profe sional era of football. Jackrabbit Jenkins Jersey The four Eredivisie titles in five years was just the beginning of the legendary Michels era at Ajax. Ajaxs domestic domination during the late 1960s was about to extend to the European stage, which would be the first international recognition of the innovation of total football.Despite being outcla sed by a cla sy AC Milan side in the 1969 European cup final, Ajax would dominate the at the beginning of the 1970s with some deaf defying performances that struck a chord with football lovers, finally the game was being played how people imagined it in their heads, total football was not born at this time, it was very much alive.The uniquene s of the Michels story is that he Jamal Carter Jersey wont be solely remembered just for the trophies he won for the clubs he managed, but his incredible and innovative management style that eventually brought high accolades from managers all over the world. Despite this worldwide recognition, it was a player closer to home that was always full of praise for Michels. One of the main beneficiaries of total football was the great Johann Cryuff who had these kind words to say about his manager, coach and friend, both as a player and as a trainer there is nobody who taught me as much as him.Cruyff and fellow Bradley McDougald Jersey teammates despondent after the 1974 World Cup FinalMichels also had succe sful and not so succesful spells away from Ajax. Barcelona were lucky to have Michels at their disposal, as it seemed he would never leave Ajax, the club that allowed him to experiment with the concept of total football. Michels also had brief spells at Los Angeles Aztecs, and later on in his career, Bayer Leverkusen. Both of these spells for Michels proved to him and the rest of the world that total football could not be implemented on just any team. Not just any team. This phrase would be extremely relevant to Michels legacy, not just in club management, but as the manager of his country of birth, Netherlands.The 1974 World Cup, for some reason, is always remembered for the team that was beaten in the final, and what was that reason? Their new brand of football. By dispatching of footballing giants like Brazil and Argentina on their way to the final, the Netherlands were unlikely favourites against the West Germans although despite taking a 1-0 lead early on the Netherlands were eventually pegged back by their European neighbours. West Germany were the champions of the world however, the Netherlands were the champions of the beautiful game, and there was one man that was responsible for this stlye of play, Rinus Michels. A Vince Young Jersey second spell with the Netherlands, in the 1980s, lead to Michels, again delivering on the international stage, this time winning the European Championships in 1988 with that Marco Van Basten goal.Nicknamed the general because of his disciplinarian attitude towards footballers, he was similar to the Jose Mourinho persona of the modern era as well as having the determination to win trophies in the latter part of his career.Rinus Michels will not only leave an impresive trophy cabinet behind, but also a leagcy has been left behind that has rebranded football into truly being known as the beautiful game.