MELBOURNE City coach John van’t Schip writes about his friendship with Johan Cruyff and the deep influence the Dutch legend had on his life:

BORN in Canada, I was an eight-year-old ice-hockey lover who didn’t speak a word of Dutch when my family returned to the Netherlands.

Weeks later a moment completely changed my life — the 1972 European Cup final between Ajax and Inter Milan.

Johan Cruyff entered my young heart on a very deep level and I never looked back.

What Johan did with the ball was pure magic, he became an instant idol as it inspired me to join a local team as I regularly dreamt of playing for Ajax and befriending Johan.

Nine years later on senior debut, my first action was receiving the ball from a player who yelled “take him on”, and I did, drawing a foul and earning praise from him.

It was Cruyff and that day, 6 December 1981, was historic because it was Johan’s comeback game, eight years after leaving for Barcelona.

Some dreams do come true, which is why I’m fond of the quote: “the future belongs to those who believe in the power of their dreams”.

If not for Cruyff, I wouldn’t have even played. He spotted me in the youth team and told first team coach Kurt Linder to give me a chance.

Johan believed in me much more than I believed in myself.

Thanks for everything Johan......

https://t.co/CShfEpNQJj — john van't schip (@johnvantschip7) 24 March 2016

He remained ever-present in my life, the biggest influence on my playing career — I played 41 times for Netherlands — and coaching career and constant football father-teacher.

He was a revolutionary as a player and coach, always thinking two steps ahead, demanding his teams entertained while having an eye for young talent.

The two-and-a-half years Johan coached me — I was one of his captains — remain the foundations of my coaching. To this day I think ‘’how would Johan act? What would Johan have done?’’

Johan advised the Dutch federation to appoint Marco van Basten and I as national team coaches in 2004, where we qualified for the 2006 World Cup and Euro 2008.

He appointed me at Mexican club Chivas Guadalajara in 2012 where we resumed regular, intensive discussions about football and life, which I relished.

Johan was an extraordinary person. While playing in the US, he taught a child with Down syndrome to swim and play soccer, which led to the creation of the Johan Cruyff Foundation.

When Cruyff returned to Barcelona as coach in 1988 — he left Ajax after a disagreement with the board — they had never won the Champions League and the famed La Masia academy didn’t exist.

Now he’s viewed as the most influential figure in Barca history.

When Melbourne Heart approached me in 2009, Johan gave me his blessing and said he’d always wished to travel to Australia.

Unfortunately he never came as he was taken from us too soon, though his legacy lives on.