Former Holland great Johan Cruyff has been named the honorary president of Barcelona, the Spanish and European champions announced on Friday. "It is a decision to honor Cruyff as a player, coach and an inspirational, father figure of the success that the club enjoyed in 2009," Barca general director Joan Oliver said on the club's official website. The 62-year-old started his career at Dutch side Ajax Amsterdam before going on to enjoy huge success with Spanish giants Barcelona. He was named the European Footballer of the Year three times in 1971, 1973 and 1974. He coached Barcelona from 1989 to 1996 and led them to a host of trophies, including four successive league titles and the European Cup in 1992. "The board decided that Cruyff had everything required both as a player and a coach and as the founder of the conceptual model of play that the club has built its success on over the past few seasons," Oliver added. Cruyff is the current coach of the Catalonia regional team in Spain.
