The Clockwork Oranje Podcast

The 2026 World Cup is here, and on the eve of the tournament, Finley Crebolder and Paul Winters discuss all things Oranje.

The two give their thoughts on the squad that Ronald Koeman selected, the impact of Jurrien Timber's withdrawal, and the key takeaways from the friendlies with Algeria and Uzbekistan, from Crysencio Summerville's performances to Donyell Malen's struggles.

They then look ahead to the World Cup, going over Oranje's group-stage opponents and giving their final predictions.

You can follow Clockwork Oranje on Twitter and Bluesky, and subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify and Google!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.clockworkoranje.com

Robin van Persie flying through the air. Arjen Robben running faster than you can say 5-1. Klaas-Jan Huntelaar kicking down the corner flag. Tim Krul coming off the bench. The 2014 World Cup was full of unforgettable memories, and Finley Crebolder and Paul Winters look back on them in this special episode.

Going from the mess Louis van Gaal inherited in 2012 to the madness of all seven matches in Brazil to the dark ages of Dutch football that followed, they discuss what made that team a surprising success and just how special that tournament was.

You can follow Clockwork Oranje on Twitter and Bluesky, and subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify and Google!

Many of the insights in this episode come from De Hand van Van Gaal (The Hand of Van Gaal), an excellent book from Hugo Logtenberg.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.clockworkoranje.com

The 2026 World Cup is getting closer and closer, and in the second episode of Clockwork Oranje's coverage, Finley Crebolder and Paul Winters discuss the Netherlands' first warm-up friendlies and the most likely squad.

Key topics of discussion include whether Kees Smit impressed on his debut, how Teun Koopmeiners did as a right winger, the mistakes Ronald Koeman made against Ecuador and which 26 players he's probably going to take to North America this summer.

You can follow Clockwork Oranje on Twitter and Bluesky, and subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify and Google!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.clockworkoranje.com

The draw for the 2026 World Cup has been made, and the Clockwork Oranje Podcast is back to dissect it.

Finley Crebolder is joined by Paul Winters for the first episode of 2026 World Cup coverage, and the two discuss how they feel about the group that the Netherlands have been handed, and look at who they're likely to face in the following rounds.

They also look back at qualifying, picking out the key talking points, and look at what Oranje's strongest starting XI is right now.

You can follow Clockwork Oranje on Twitter and Bluesky, and subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify and Google!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.clockworkoranje.com

We’re now four games into Ronald Koeman’s second spell as Netherlands manager, and things aren’t going too well, with the side just losing 4-2 to Croatia and 3-2 to Italy on home turf.

Kevin from Oranje Canada joins us for the latest episode, which we begin by going through those matches, giving our thoughts on what exactly went wrong and what went right, if anything.

We then have more specific discussions about players that impressed us across the two games, players that didn’t, and the new system - similar to Manchester City’s - that Koeman introduced, which we don’t think suits the squad too well.

Some of the biggest questions surrounding Oranje right now include who should start in goal, whether Virgil van Dijk should be replaced by Sven Botman, and why Koeman is struggling when he did so well in his first spell; we talk about all of that before looking ahead to the next matches and debating whether anything but two wins is enough for the manager to keep his job.

You can follow Clockwork Oranje on Twitter and subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify and Google!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.clockworkoranje.com

The 2022 World Cup is just days away, and the Clockwork Oranje preview of it is here.

Prior to recording, we asked all of you to send in any questions you had about Oranje ahead of the tournament, and the preview is based around our answers to those questions.

Who should start in goal? How big a part will Xavi Simons play? How far can the Netherlands ultimately get? We give our opinion on all of that and much more.

We also rue the fact that the tournament is being held in a country that treats LGBTQ people so abhorrently, and if you feel the same, you can support those people at the link below: 

https://www.stonewall.org.uk/our-work/campaigns/stand-lgbtq-people-qatar-proud-stadium

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.clockworkoranje.com

The story of the Netherlands' 2010 World Cup was one of delight, devastation and division, and we relived it all in the latest episode of the podcast...

In the first of a few episodes looking back at select World Cups ahead of this year's in Qatar, we kick things off by looking at the squad the Dutch were taking to South Africa and what the pre-tournament expectations were for the side.

We then go through the month that followed chronologically, discussing the events of each match as well as what our states of mind were at the times. 

Particular attention is of course paid to the glorious victory over Brazil and the heartbreaking defeat against Spain, with this being the first time ever that both of us have discussed the final in-depth.

After doing so, we move on to considering the legacy of the team. It's the joint-most successful Dutch World Cup side ever and yet is not that highly rated or loved by many - why is that and is it fair?

You can follow Clockwork Oranje on Twitter and subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify and Google!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.clockworkoranje.com

A lot has happened in the world of Oranje so far in 2022, and we take a look at all of it in the first podcast episode of the year.

Well, it's actually just me - Finley - rather than we this time around, and I kick things by giving my thoughts on the first matches of the year against Denmark and Germany and the 3-4-1-2 system that we used for the first time in them.

Specifically, I pick out what I see as the main pros and cons of the formation and suggest ways in which Louis van Gaal can address such cons going forward, not that he needs my advice...

After that, I then turn my attention to the World Cup draw, sharing my opinion of the group we have been given which contains Qatar, Senegal and Ecuador; as you can probably guess, I'm pretty happy with it.

Van Gaal will be leaving after said World Cup, and it has been confirmed that Ronald Koeman will return to replace him. I finish off the episode by looking at that decision before picking out players I'd like to see given a chance in the next international break and paying tribute to our current Bondscoach following news of his cancer diagnosis.

You can follow Clockwork Oranje on Twitter and subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify and Google!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.clockworkoranje.com

The Netherlands are back in the World Cup, and we discuss how they got there, how they look and how good it feels in the latest podcast.

The last episode was recorded before Louis van Gaal had taken charge of a match, so we start this one by giving our views on how he had been doing prior to the last two games of qualifying.

We then turn our attention to them, discussing what went wrong, what went right, the sickening nerves we felt before qualification was secured and the joy and relief we felt afterwards.

After that, the state of the team is discussed, with it being agreed that the midfield is the big problem to solve going forward and Steven Bergwijn and Memphis Depay were the bright sparks this time around.

Finally, we talk about the importance of not turning a blind eye to the problematic issues regarding next year's tournament being held in Qatar, even if you're going to watch it.

While we'll do our best to raise awareness about such issues, we're going to. After eight years away by the time it starts, we wouldn't miss it for the world.

Oranje are back, and it feels oh so good.

You can follow Clockwork Oranje on Twitter and subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify and Google!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.clockworkoranje.com

Louis van Gaal is the Netherlands manager once again, and we discuss his appointment in the latest episode of the podcast.

First things first, we take a look back at his last spell as the Oranje boss from 2012 to 2014 in which he led the team to third place at the World Cup. Just how good a job did he do that back then? And how does that squad compare to the current one?

Based on what he did in that job and the many others he has had, we also discuss what we can expect from him this time around, from the use of young players to potential tactics he'll implement. Will he stick with the 5-3-2 setup? Or is a return to 4-3-3 on the cards. 

Van Gaal isn't the only new man in the camp, with Henk Fraser and Danny Blind coming aboard as the new assistants, and their appointments are also looked at, with conversations about whether the former could take the top job after the World Cup and whether concerns over the latter given his failed stint in that very job are valid.

Finally, we look ahead to the crucial World Cup qualifiers coming up and sum up our overall thoughts on Oranje's new coaching team.

You can follow Clockwork Oranje on Twitter and subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify and Google!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.clockworkoranje.com