PSV had a fantastic season, crowned with the championship. And so coach Peter Bosz and striker Luuk de Jong are thoroughly enjoying what they have achieved with the Eindhoven club. The captain and the coach talk about their pride and the secret of PSV. And they are secretly already looking forward to next season.
“I have rarely had a season in which I had as much fun as this season,” De Jong reflects. The striker has already won three previous national titles with PSV. “Of course that championship match against Ajax was fantastic and so was the unexpected national championship visit to Zwolle. But this is the most beautiful in my opinion. The way we played football this season was just insanely good.”
“We entertained the audience all season, that makes me most proud.”
For trainer Peter Bosz it is only his first national title at the highest level. Last summer he tasted how much the club was longing for a new title. “The fact that PSV had not become champions for five years also helped in some way. The hunger was present in everyone. For me, the satisfaction lies mainly in the way we achieved it. We entertained the audience all season. That makes me most proud.”
According to the captain and the trainer, the secret of this PSV lies in several things. First of all, the players fully believed in the coach’s plan. “I said in the summer that we are going to do it this way and I will not make any concessions to that,” says Bosz. “The players believed in that and they picked it up incredibly quickly. That’s why I’ve been saying all season that this is the best group I’ve worked with.”
The role of captain Luuk de Jong was also more important than ever this season. Not only with his many goals, but especially off the field. “Last season we lost a lot of points against smaller opponents. That really shouldn’t happen again this season. You then keep everyone sharp within the selection.”
“At the time I thought, you bastard… but I knew exactly what he meant.”
The club’s top scorer did this not only to his fellow players, but also to his coach. “I wanted to give Luuk a match against a somewhat ‘smaller’ opponent,” says Bosz. “Then he said to me: ‘Well, trainer, last year I was injured against Emmen, Cambuur and Groningen. Then I thought: Son of a bitch, those are exactly the games you lost last year. I knew exactly what he meant and that’s why this is such a good group to work with.”
The chemistry ultimately led to the national title and (on Monday) a grand celebration on Stadhuisplein. Luuk de Jong is already putting Joey Veerman forward as the main pacesetter for the party. We shouldn’t expect any crazy antics from Bosz on the steps there. “I’m more of a silent enjoyer.”
And then the trainer’s gaze may very carefully turn to next season, if he can try the same trick again. “That won’t be easy, but as a staff we have already come up with some tricks. We must create new hunger. Because the goal is again the championship. We are fully committed to that.”
