Holland’s 2-1 victory over Brazil on Friday afternoon put them into a very winnable semi-final over either Uruguay or Ghana.
The Dutch showed good fighting spirit to get back into the quarter-final, by coming back from a goal down with a stroke of luck.
Favourites
The Brazilians were favourites along with Spain to win the tournament and have looked superb right the way through, from back to front everybody have performed. Yet Holland overcame them with a mixture of guile and spirit.
Sneijder
The crucial player in the victory for the Oranje was Inter playmaker Wesley Sneijder. The 26 year-old has had an incredible few months. Having won Serie A, Champions League and Italian Cup last season he is now hoping to add the World Cup to his list of achievements.
I’ve always been a big fan of the midfielder and was glad that he left Real Madrid for Inter last summer. He was a bargain buy. He is the player that makes the Dutch midfield tick and in my opinion is underrated. He is quite simply one of the best attacking midfielders in the world.
Reliant
Holland can be a bit too over-reliant on the Inter playmaker. Sneijder and Robben are the two most dangerous weapons in the Dutch armoury and without them they would look slightly toothless. Robin Van Persie and Rafael Van Der Vaart are also good players but not as important as the aforementioned pair.
History
The Dutch have never won a World Cup despite appearing in World Cup finals in 1974 and 1978. Both sides included players from the era of ‘Total Football’. The system of football that Johan Cruyff and his teammates perfected.
That hugely talented group of players were unfortunate to face Germany in 1974 and Argentina in 1978, who were both host nations. Cruyff led the revolution in football, which was pioneered by coach Rene Michels.
Cruyff one of the most talented players to ever grace a football pitch failed to win the World Cup. He refused to play in the 1978 World Cup finals and maybe if he had the Dutch would have become the World champions.
The current Dutch side have a chance to go one better than those revered teams of the 1970’s and even the great Dutch side of the late eighties and become World Champions. It’s their chance to write their names alongside the likes of Gullit, Van Basten and Cruyff in the Dutch footballing history books.
Luck
In past tournaments the Dutch have suffered some awful luck. This time around they got their reward for their fighting spirit. Equalising through an own goal was a stroke of fortune but they still had to go on and finish the job and they did just that.
Popular
The Dutch football team are one of the most popular in world football. They bring a colour and flair to any tournament they are involved in. It’s not just their team that are popular it’s also their colourful fans.
The Dutch international fans follow their team in major numbers and mostly in good cheer. Their fans are a credit to their team and their country.
Attacking football
I am just glad that a team who like to play attacking football will win the tournament. Most of the remaining sides are attacking sides. The last World Cup was won by a very defence-minded Italy side.
Adopt-a-team
When England got knocked out of the World Cup, like a lot of English fans, I choose a team to support from the remaining teams and that team was Holland. I couldn’t have made a better choice.
The main reason for choosing Holland was the presence of Everton defender John Heitinga in the Dutch ranks. Heitinga became a cult figure at Goodison Park last season and most Evertonians now keep an eye out for his countries results.
Worthy
If Holland wins the World Cup then they will no doubt prove a popular winner, thanks to their overall contribution to the game throughout the years. Holland could finally take the long overdue title of World Champions!
Will the Dutch win the World Cup?
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