IN the mid-1970s, there was a certain fascination for all things Dutch among the football fraternity. Some managers, such as Dave Sexton, Ron Greenwood and Bobby Robson, were students of the European game and attempted to bring elements of the continent to England. It didn’t always work, for English players were not schooled in the same way as their European counterparts, but these managers at least demonstrated they were willing to learn from Germany, the Netherlands and other countries. English football was still somewhat xenophobic, however, and clubs rarely saw a glimpse of a foreign player. In February 1978, the European Community decreed that the football associations of member states had to allow players from abroad access to England. In the summer of 1978,…