The great Dutch goal scorer and FC Barcelona executive par excellence Johan Cruyff has been diagnosed with lung cancer. Cruyff is 68 and learned the results from tests this week. The board of directors at FC Barcelona, the La Liga powerhouse that has prospered mightily using the passing style Cruyff introduced, was convened for an extraordinary meeting when it issued this statement: “The Board of Directors has expressed, in the name of the Club, its full support and affection for former player and manager Johan Cruyff, one of the greatest Barça icons of all time, and our shared hope that he will recover from the illness that he has been diagnosed with this week.”
Joseph Maria Bartomeu, current Barca president tweeted encouragement, and the hope that Cruyff will “win this one too.” Cruyff gave up smoking in 1991 after double bypass surgery. He is widely considered one of the greatest players in football/soccer history. Below is an aptly named video: Johan Cruyff: The Revolutionary Genius. You can also read more here about Cruyff, in an article called Recognition of Man Who Created A Style, which says in part: “As a player he turned football into an art form … Johan came along and revolutionized everything … the modern day Barça started with him …-
Johan, you’ll win this one too! The whole Club is behind you.
— Josep Maria Bartomeu (@jmbartomeu) October 22, 2015
