ARCHIVES - Dutch Need To Play Beautiful Game

Looking back on the history of Holland and the World Cup they reached the first round of the 1934 and 1938 tournaments – having not partaken in 1930 tournament. The nation did not enter the 1950 and 1954 tournaments either and then failed to qualify for Sweden in 1958, Chile 1962, England 1966 and Mexico 1970.  Then in 1974 and 1978 tournaments, as if out of the ether, Holland then reached two consecutive finals with a group of players whose names were to become household names capturing the imagination of millions around the world with an attractive style of play.

In 1982 and 1986 Holland failed again to qualify but improved in 1986 by reaching the last 16 and then in the following tournament reached the quarter finals in 1994. Four years later Holland were fourth in France ‘98 failing to make it to Korea and Japan in 2001 after a slip up in Dublin one September afternoon in 2001. 


In Germany 2006 after qualifying from their group they lost to Portugal by one goal in Nuremberg at the easy Credit Stadion with eight players booked and four players sent off for accumulating two yellow cards; Costinha and Deco for Portugal and Khalid Boulahdrouz and Giovanni Van Bronckhorst for Holland.


All in all though it is nine qualifications from a total of 19 world cup competitions.

However the round of last sixteen has been a major World Cup hurdle for Dutch teams over recent years as they have flattered to deceive on occasions and fallen short of the pre tournament promise of many a talented squad  – often due to reasons off the pitch rather than on it. But in the 2010 tournament the team have eased their way to the quarter final in an efficient and effective way with not a hint so far of the traditional World Cup discontent that affected their camp in previous tournaments.

Up to now though the football has been more ugly than flamboyant, with the infamous total football for which they have become renowned, only visible in quick glimpses. But by reaching the quarterfinals this week they match the achievements of 1994 and 1998 where on both occasions they came up against Brazilian opposition - going no further in the competition as a result. In South Africa they are heading towards another showdown with Brazil who will be the toughest opponents yet in the World Cup and will offer more resistance than Slovakia did in the Round of Last 16.

In the group stage Holland found little match in their games with Japan, Cameroon and Denmark.

  

Of all European teams that have competed in the World Cup no country has caught the imagination of the unbiased observer more over the years than Holland given their assembly line of great players over the decades; John Cruyff; Johan Neeskens, Marco Van Basten, Ruud Gullit; Frank Rijkjard, Marc Overmars, Denis Bergkamp, Ronald Koeman to mention just a few names.  Going back to a previous generation the legendary squadron of Ajax players in the 1970s saw the start of the Clockwork Orange – losing in two finals to the host nation.

In terms of magic moments many are still etched in the memory and will forever grace any World Cup DVD’ with their sheer brilliance. None more so that the 65 metre ball from Frank de Boer to Denis Bergkamp in the 89th minute against Argentina which he controlled two steps from the touchline with the Dutch striker turning the defender inside out to then deftly drill the ball into the top left hand corner of the net in a sunny Marseilles Velodrome - sealing passage into the semi final.

For such a small nation they are giants in world football and the current academy of talent in South Africa would not look out of place in any Dutch Hall of Fame ether. The likes of Wesley Sneijder, who arrives laden with medals on the foot of Milan winning three titles,  the last being the Champions League which he won at the home of Real Madrid last May – where he had also won a La Liga title in 2007/2008 when he played for the Spanish champions.

This crop of players are achievers in their own right with Arjen Robben - now of Bayern - having  made his mark at Chelsea in their Premier League wins under Jose Mourinho. Although now at Bayern - where he won the Bundesliga title - he arrived there as an outcast from Real Madrid, albeit with a La Liga title under his belt. His team-mate in Munich, Mark van Bommel, may have lost the final in Madrid but already has a medal from his time at Barcelona where he had won both a La Liga Title and the Champions League under Frank Rijkjard.

So undoubtedly there is ability in this 2010 Dutch team

However the first meeting between Holland and Brazil in a World Cup was on a wet night in the Westfalenstadion in Dortmund back in 1974 and it was an ugly and unpleasant match where Brazil chose physicality as the best way to deal with the skill and flair of the Rep, Rensenbrink, Van Hanagem, Krol and company.  In the end Luis Pereira was sent off after a rugby tackle on Johan Cruyff but by then the two Johan's - Neeskens and Cruyff - had scored a goal a piece to win the game for Holland.

The Dutch then stepped forward to the final by winning their second round group - in a World Cup based on 16 teams in those days – only to lose to a German team led by Franz Beckenbauer. But the legacy of the 1974 team and indeed the 1978 team, even without Cruyff in Argentina, is still evident today.

In 2010 the Dutch nation also expects and now that it is the quarterfinal stage the nation will be looking for the latest players to deliver – even though history is probably going against them.

One of two previous meetings with Brazil was in Dallas in USA 1994 where the Dutch arrived after an easy demolition of the Republic of Ireland in the Orange Bowl in Orlando by 2-0. The  match only came alive in the second half when Romario and Bebeto scored with twenty minutes gone on the clock.  In quick reply Denis Bergkamp scored for Holland and the fight back started in the Cotton Bowl, especially when Aron Winter equalised in the 76^th minute.

But a drilled free kick by defender Branco in the 81^st minute ended the Dutch USA dream and they returned home after the quarter finals - at least losing to the eventual World Cup winners.

In France 1998 the reward for the beating Argentina in the last minute was a meeting with Brazil at the Velodrome in Marseilles once again. On this occasion Brazil came armed with serious gunslingers; Roberto Carlos, Dunga, Rivaldo, Leonardo, Bebeto and Ronaldo. In a close match the teams ended level after not only 90 minutes, but extra time as well, after Ronaldo's  46^th minute goal was cancelled out by Patrick Kluijvert three minutes from the end of normal time.

In the ensuing penalties there were some unlikely villains for Holland with stalwarts like Philip Cocu and Ronald de Boer having their penalties saved by Taffarel thus denying the Dutch World Cup dream once again -  but this time in the semi final.

Twelve years on only Andre Ooijer and Giovanni van Bronckhorst are still in the squad with Frank de Boer part of the backroom staff. So those memories of Marseille will be added motivation – if it were needed – to the latest production line of Rafael van de Vaart, Dirk Kuyt, Robin van Persie, Klaas Jan Huntelaar, John Heitinga and Ryan Babel.

In a playing style that could be more reminiscent of the 70’s these players are talented enough with capable goal scorers right across the midfield - as well as up front - to reach the 2010 final.

As a set piece and dead ball expert Sneijder offers a variety of options as well as being the main playmaker. And when the coach's son-in-law, Van Bommel,  puts his mind to it he can be deadly when he is on song. Unfortunately he tends to get involved in off the ball situations and is regularly censured by referees so Holland really need him to hold his verbal fire against Brazil to be effective.

For this match Inter Milan team mates Julio Cesar, Lucio, Maicon and Sneijder will be on different sides for the fist time this season when they meet on Friday July 2^nd at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth in the quarter final  The Dutchman will be hoping it will be third time lucky having lost the last two meetings. One thing is for sure though, it will need a bit of magic from the Oranje to stop this Brazil team. 


But they might just have that bit of magic in Wesley Sneijder if the team play the beautiful way!


World Cup Latest: Netherlands coach defends style of play.




OSM - all rights reserved [first published June 28 2010]