Van Himst was the record holder in the number of caps, and the star of Belgian football. He was renowned for his intuition and natural ability which was embodied in his dribbles, passes and shots on goal, all with the outside of the foot. He had a patent for that, it would seem. His style was beautiful: always upright, with a strong back, never looking down, always keeping the overview. He is probably the best football player in Belgian history, the biggest name as well. The current generation of Red Devils do provide strong competition in this area. Despite his status he only played in two big tournaments: the 1970 World Cup and the European Championship in 1972.