Cruyff, who enjoyed a stellar career both as a player and a manager, was diagnosed with lung cancer last October.
The news of his sad demise was confirmed on his official website. The statement read:
‘On March 24 2016 Johan Cruyff (68) died peacefully in Barcelona, surrounded by his family after a hard fought battle with cancer. It’s with great sadness that we ask you to respect the family’s privacy during their time of grief.’
Cruyff captained Holland at the 1974 World Cup, at the height of his playing career, and led the Dutch to the final. Despite winning Holland an early penalty, which Johan Neeskens converted, Cruyff and Holland were left disappointed as they lost 2-1 to West Germany.
At Ajax he won seven league titles but most notably three consecutive European Cups from 1971 to 1973.
Cruyff’s career at Ajax ran in parallel to manager Rinus Michels implementing the highly successful Total Football system.
Michels went to Barcelona in 1971 and Cruyff followed two years later.
He retuned to Barcelona as a coach and won the European Cup, in 1992, and four league titles among a raft of trophies. During his time at the club he underwent major heart surgery in 1991, which prompted him to stop smoking.
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