Group C of the 1974 FIFA World Cup consisted of the Netherlands, Bulgaria, Sweden and Uruguay, and by today's perspective, the Netherlands deservedly had the strongest group, but it was clearly not in that era. Before the 1974 World Cup, the Netherlands basically had no influence in international competitions, and even after the 1938 World Cup, the Netherlands did not qualify for the World Cup.
So it seems that the Netherlands was a weak brigade at that time, then you are wrong, because that era is full of Dutch football marks, the 1970 Champions League champion is the Dutch team Feyenoord, the 1971-1973 three consecutive champions are the terrible Ajax, that Dutch team is also a star, Repp, Keizer, Swift, Arihan, Kroll and so on, of course, the brightest star is of course Cruyff.
In fact, the Dutchman's road to the promotion is not easy, even a bit thrilling, in the qualifiers, the Netherlands' biggest opponent is their neighbor Belgium, in addition to two direct matches, the other competitions have won both teams. In the direct match between the two teams, it was 0:0, but in fact, a good belgian ball was misjudged by the referee as offside.
What made Dutch football qualitatively change was the ascension of a generation of famous coaches Michels, and after qualifying for the World Cup, the Dutch Football Association hired Michels to replace Fade genk as the manager of the national team. In the warm-up matches before the Start of the World Cup, the Netherlands has gradually been grinding into a shape. Commanded by Michels, Cruyff showed off his talent, and the Netherlands became a favourite to win the title.
The Netherlands' first opponent in the group stage was Uruguay, and Michels sent such a starting line-up: Joan Brod (Amsterdam), Subir (Ajax), Alihan (Ajax), RiceBergen (Fayenoord), Kroll (Ajax), Wim Jansen (Feyenoord), Neskens (Ajax), Van Hanegen (Fayenoord), Repp (Ajax), Cruyff (Barcelona), Rendsenblinck (Anderlecht). From the perspective of the lineup, this is a team composed of Ajax and Feyenoord, and the Ajax players are the core of it, after all, the two teams were the top teams at that time.
Against such a strong Dutch team, Uruguay had almost no way to play the game, and with Repp's second score in the 7th and 86th minutes of the game, the Dutch team made the opening. In the other match of the same group, Sweden drew 0-0 with Bulgaria.
In the second round of the group stage, the Netherlands faced Sweden, but the Netherlands failed to continue the momentum of the first round, shaking hands with Sweden 0:0. But there was an amazing move in the game, in which Cruyff suddenly slammed a right-footed ball into the bottom line when he faced Swedish defender Olsen on the left side of the penalty area, and then crossed from the bottom. This gorgeous move that combines fake movements, speed and flexibility is called Cruyff turning. Uruguay on the other side drew 1-1 with Bulgaria in the final moments.
In the final round of the group stage, the Netherlands temporarily ranked first in the group with 3 points, Sweden and Bulgaria scored 2 points, and Uruguay scored 1 point at the bottom. Although a draw would have qualified, the Netherlands still sent their strongest squad. In the 5th minute of the game, the Foul in the Bulgarian penalty area sent a point, and Neskens took the lead to give the Netherlands a 1-0 lead. Before the end of the first half, the Netherlands scored another penalty, and Neskens scored twice to give the Netherlands a 2-0 lead at halftime. In the second half, the Netherlands still opened fire, scoring three goals, but Kroll scored a oolong, and finally the Netherlands won 4:1 against Bulgaria to qualify for the first place in the group. Sweden qualified for second in the group with a 3-0 match.