Two coaches who list former Dutch stars Dennis Bergkamp, Frank de Boer and Arnold Muhren among their colleagues at Ajax will be in Belfast today and tomorrow to pass on their knowledge of the beautiful game.

Eddie van Schaick and Renaldo Landburg have coached all over the world and are bringing the Ajax Coaching Clinic to Ashfield Boys High School.

“We are both looking forward to coming to Belfast, it’s a great opportunity for us to share knowledge and also learn from other coaches,” said van Schaick.

“We are particularly looking at the pre-season programme. Many of us come from a time when most pre-season training would be done without the ball and we would spend our time running laps.

“Now there is a more scientific approach. Much research has been done and now pre-season training is more football related.”

A host of current stars have emerged through the world renowned Ajax youth system.

“Our coaches have worked with current Dutch internationals like Rafael van der Vaart, Wesley Sneijder (both now Real Madrid), Nigel de Jong (now Manchester City), from nine,” said van Schaick.

“I have a young player at the moment who is a superb athlete, but I have doubts about his technical ability. The coaching co-ordinator at Ajax has decided to be patient because he’s similar to Ryan Babel (Liverpool) at that age. It is a matter of being patient and giving players confidence.

“You can have a talented kid at 11 or 12 and they then go through a growth spurt. After that they have to figure out whether they want to take football seriously.”

And according to van Schaick it takes more than simply ability to put players on a route to the top.

“The characteristic that a kid must have to make it to the top is determination. Obviously talent and athletic ability help, but determination to succeed and ability to bring out the best in yourself are more important,” he said.

“Discipline is a key part aspect of determination. Discipline includes things like lifestyle in which good nutrition and taking proper rest periods is vital.

“You shouldn’t be hanging around bars all night if you hope to produce a top performance on the pitch. Visiting bars should be an exception, not a ritual.

“My colleague at Ajax, Arnold Muhren, says when he was a player he didn’t go to parties, he was in bed early every night to get proper rest and eight hours sleep. He said if he hadn’t lived like that he would have been useless.”

And van Schaick pointed out that young kids are the same the world over, saying: “Kids in the 8-12 age group anywhere in the world are pretty similar. The differences come later on. Each country has its own culture and the culture and work ethic usually shows in sport.

“Ajax played Everton in a youth tournament recently and our football was better, but their work ethic was better. They were compensating by individual work ethic and team spirit.

“Sometimes the Dutch miss the ‘glue’ between players, that they are willing to fight for each other and go after every ball. That’s not really part of Dutch football.”