Article by Adrian Duţă – Published on Wednesday, 06 May 2026, 19:35 / Updated on Wednesday, 06 May 2026 19:51
Marco van Basten, the former great striker of the Netherlands, European champion in 1988, is disappointed with the current team of the “Machine Orange”, which he does not give any chance at the World Championship in the summer.
Three-time Ballon d'Or winner Van Basten surprised the Dutch football world with his latest statement. An icon in the Netherlands, he said he will stick with Brazil at the World Cup.
Marco Van Basten: “It is very important that Italian football returns to the hands of Italians”
On the occasion of the launch of a new book about AC Milan, the former great player spoke to the Italian press. He analyzed, among other things, the dramatic state of Italian football.
“There are currently many foreign owners in Italy who have nothing to do with the history of the clubs and are not interested in it. It's a shame.
It is very important that Italian football is back in Italian hands. That's the only way I can return to the top of Europe,” Van Basten told Sportmediaset, quoted by sportnieuws.nl.
He also spoke about the club where he wrote history, AC Milan: “They are not what they once were. But I still follow them and hope they recover quickly. Now Inter dominate and I don't like that at all.”
Italy's national team has also not escaped criticism: “The national team now lacks stars. Italy has always had a great goalkeeper, a great defender, a great midfielder and a great striker. Today, you hardly see them anymore and that's strange”
Marco Van Basten: “I will support Carlo Ancelotti's Brazil”
Arriving at the Dutch national team, trained by Ronald Koeman, Van Basten said that he has no expectations regarding the results of WC 2026, which is why he will support Brazil, the team trained by Carlo Ancelotti, his friend.
“I'm a fan of the Dutch national team, but I don't expect anything from them at the World Cup. So I'll support Carlo Ancelotti's Brazil at the World Cup. I don't expect Holland to go too far,” Van Basten said.
