Playful Oranje wins first two games…

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by Jan

And sets a record too. Ten World Cup qualifications games won, in a row. That record belongs to Bert and Louis of course :-). But this has never been done before by Holland.

And the youthful Oranje learns fast from the old master LVG. Three days after Turkey, Holland plays an even better game (against a weaker opponent…granted…) and scores 4 away goals.

Jeremain Lens scores twice and has one assist as he had to replace Arjen Robben who got a groin response in the warming up. Van Gaal: “I won’t take any chances with players’ fitness. Robben is too important and as we’ve seen, his replacements can do well too. Heitinga had cramp in the Turkey came and I didn’t want to risk an injury for him in this game. Besides, Vlaar is an inch taller, so that helped too against the headstrong Hungarians.”

In the stadium where Bert van Marwijk’s Oranje played great games, the new Oranje started to show itself in full form. It might not have been a flashy game like the Hungary 0-4 game in 2011 but this Oranje did very well.

Lens was able to score his first 3 minutes into the game on a perfect cross by team mate Narsingh. Hungary could equalise after a couple minutes, when Clasie allowed Gera the chance to dive over his leg. Dszudszak didn’t fail but it was Feyenoord defender Martins Indi who headed Oranje back on course on a perfect Sneijder cross. Holland didn’t make that many mistakes this time around, although Clasie was lucky that he wasn’t penalised with a second yellow and second penalty when he handled the ball just before the break.

Oranje defended calmly and had some attractive attacking plays over the wings. It never panicked, even when leader of the pack RVP decided his thigh muscle needed a rest. The hungry Huntelaar would take his place and after Lens’ second goal, the Hunter scored his goal, taking him closer to the record top scorer, assistant coach Pat Kluivert. Huntelaar is now on par with Cruyff and Lenstra.

Skipper Sneijder was pleased but also critical. “Our first half was not great. Our ball circulation was too slow. But in the second half, we improved and played well. Every lose ball was ours, we had speed on the wings and we controlled the game. We also demonstrated that every one wants to work. Everyone is keen to close the gaps. Than football is relatively easy and fun. This makes we are always tight and close and there are several options.”

And truth be told, even Robin van Persie, super striker, was working and challenging where he could.

Bruno Martins Indi was replaced by team mate Joris Mathijsen, as a result of injury as well, while Adam Maher came late to replace Kevin Strootman, who still played a good game, but was less deciding this time around compared to the Turkey game. Strootman was kneed in the back.

Van Gaal: “We got six points, but lost a couple of players: Krul and Fer first. Now Robin, Bruno, Kevin and Arjen Robben…”

Louis van Gaal is a contrarian. Whenever the media are ready to criticise, he defends his team. Whenever euphoria comes up, Louis will criticise his team :-).

“Listen, a 1-4 against Hungary is quite a good result, in Europe. I think we have made a statement these last four days. But… I am not satisfied. Hungary was in disarray in the second half and we didn’t respond good enough. We could and should have scored a couple more. We didn’t take all our chances against Turkey, and this made me sit nervously on that bench. But this time around, we were sloppy with our opportunities again.”

LVG was pleased with Clasie’s performance. “He played well. He did much better than against Turkey. The only criticism I have, is that at times he was too slow to push up for the lose ball. That is part of his job. To be alert and always be in time. That is the objective. And he didn’t manage to do this always. But the whole team deserves a compliment. This team has hardly played together and most are pretty young.”

Van Gaal likes to compliment himself too. “And I am allowed to say my subs were ok? I replaced Robben, had to replace Robben, and Lens didn’t disappoint did he? Huntelaar came in and scored too. And Mathijsen had to come on without a warming up and played strong too.”

When the reporter said to Van Gaal, that despite Van Gaal’s decisions it was actually Lens that scored, not Van Gaal, the coach became prickly. “If I am not allowed to say I coached well today, I will shut up.”

But he finished positively. “This shows that the Eredivisie is actually a strong league. We have technically and tactically strong players. We shouldn’t have allowed that penalty though… but we have good young talents and very good internationally experienced players. Good mix.”

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  2. Great article, as usual…

    MOTM: Lens

    Surprise Impact Defenders: RVR / BMI

    Now what? Do we continue experimenting with various defenders in different roles or are we starting to narrow down our options?

    Will we see Ricky Wolf and Ola during this WC campaign?

    Many questions remain but at least we can breathe easy until October…

    Nice win, 2 in the bag.

    1. BMI is starting to look promising. He’s taller than Mathijsen and Heitinga. He’s very comfortable on the ball. He has good creativity as we saw in the game against Belgium. Scored a header against Hungary.

      If he can polish his defensive game by reading offenses well, better positioning, applying pressure on opposition attack and improving his tackling, then he could be a definite replacement in the making!

  3. First two games: We run and pressed a lot more and that is very positive. In both games we were better in the second half, I am guessing the opponents got tired and didn’t resist much.

    new players are learning the positions (BMI big improvement).

    But still the whole thing looks too fragile and any celebration of rebirth would be premature. We have a long way to the WK2014 final 🙂

      1. get stealthy for Google Chrome (I assume you have google chrome because it’s the best). Then go to options and choose Netherlands as the location that you want to appear to be in. It’ll load slowly but it will work

  6. Happy for Van Gaal. Keep de Jong, VDV and VDW out. Afellay will be welcome for me but will have to show it all over again.

    I am positive. In just 3 games now we have Fer, de Vrij, Narsingh, Lens, Martins Indi, Van Rhijn, Janmaat, Clasie, Viergever and more to come. Some of these players made their debuts with Van Marwijk but were not considered in important games.

    With a full squad I would love to see this eleven:

    1) Krul
    2) V Rhijn
    3) Heitinga
    4) Pieters
    5) Martins Indi
    6) Strootman
    7) Narsingh-Lens
    8) Fer
    9) Van Persie
    10) Sneijder
    11) Robben

    Not that bad!! And in defence we now have other really hice options!! =)

  8. I think Van Gaal has decided to play according to a system. Instead of trying to push Wesley and Rafael on one midfield “because they are both so good” he says: I need a playmaker, a runner and a destroyer. Wes can be the playmaker and Raf will be his replacement. Strootman the runner, Fer or Afellay the replacement. And Clasie can be the destroyer, or Nigel can be that, or Strootman even, or Schaars.

    This is how LVG operates. He has profiles for players in his system and matches that with the right player.

    PERFECT

    1. yup, when he was at Barcelona, one day rivaldo came up to van gaal and said that he wanted to play in the middle and not on the left. Van Gaal responded by saying that “you are not above the system, no player is above the system”

      1. another term to use could be “shuttler”, the guy that just keeps play ticking over, finding simple passes, isn’t afraid to put in a tackle now and again, has a strong motor to cover ground, and retains possession. Arteta played this role very well for Arsenal last season, and Wilshere the year before that.

  10. I kinda love this team..dont know why i like them so much but i do. Many mistakes, many players learning, lots of energy and (from me) not a lot of expectancy…

    This team will get slaughtered against top teams like Germany or Spain..they wont win the WC in 2 years time..but damned; its so much more fun to watch them than that slow, ego-filled, overrated side of the last 5 years!!

    1. i completely agree with you. me too,i do like this team,it’s ereally entertaining and nice to watch them. even my mum told me that this oranje was much more sympathetic than bvm’s team 🙂

  11. Idiot….
    We made a WK final on the back of a 3 year undefeated reign. Only Casillas boot stopped us from being champions.
    I’ve watched the 74,78,88,90,94,98 teams play in person and I completely regret not going to Sth Africa to see Bert van Marwijks team play…..
    I want Oranje to win something – I remember the pride we all had in 88 and in 2010 the Dutch people actually believed that we could again compete with the best. If you think that the last 5 years were an overrated side then you are an idiot….

    1. calling me an idiot is not very nice.. of course you can disagree but theres no need to call me names

      i think we were highly overrated under vMarwijk.. cant remember many games where we played good for 90 min, esp. during the WC

      and sure; i would love Oranje to win something (anything)… and maybe u run with a different crowd than me..but i had very few friends who believed we would win the WC in 2010

      but again; like the people on this blog who know me longer know; im a romantic guy, i rather see the team play all out and loose (like during the EC04) than to play like they did in 2010 and reach the finals

      1. I don’t think oranje put a great show in EC04. The loss against Czech after leading 2-0! Barely beating Sweden on penalty kicks! That team had no identity. They neither entertained nor got good results. I blame the coach for that 100%.

      2. I’m mature enough to apologise…. I’m sorry if you took that personally. I love my football and I love Oranje. Even when our players are not the mavericks of Cruyffs era – Sneijder and company deserve more credit than you give them. I wish I had seen them through to the final. Maybe if I had supported them in person things would be different! 😉

    2. @ Ed. While I dislike name calling, I agree with your points. BVM didn’t produce the most spectacular football, but produced great results. Spain won 3 major cups in a row now. Can you name a single exciting game they played (other than EC12 final)? Of course not. They’re after results. Call it boring tiki taka or shitty shatta, they don’t care what others think of their style. They have a system that produces results and they all stick to that system. This is what I liked about BVM. His failure in EC12 was mainly due to the players abandoning that system!

      1. ed & overmars, i truly utterly and completely agree with you both. had we won the WC in SA bVm would still be coaching now regardless of the Euro result and we would all be much happier oranje campers. his system produced remarkable results and even though we did not maintain the same form for 90 minutes we had 2 generally nonexistent important things on our side: 1) luck and 2) depth.

    3. >I’ve watched the 74,78,88,90,94,98 teams play in person and I completely regret not going to Sth Africa to see Bert van Marwijks team play…..

      Ed, you must be one of the few guys on this board older than me… I have not seen the 74 in person, 78 and onwards. But I agree on everything else… Still beating myself for not going to S Africa… Will not make the same mistake if in Brazil we do good. I have a good friend in Rio and will do anything to get a ticket for the final…

  12. @Goose i should say amen to you,the games are exciting now,Coz of the youngsters…Orange has the players to win a WC in 2014,These guys can…they need some time together and we need additional 4 good class players in all part of the game….i hope van gal does it…But its a shear gambling that you play all 18/20 year olds in defense.Defense you need experience,I think Douglas,Maduro and Heitinga will bring that.Still am not convinced as clasie as lone holding mid,Our holding mids should be Strootman-Fer or Dejong/anita-Deguzman..Clasie could join them as a third man in 433 system.

  13. Afaleey is an arrogant prick and a slow thinker in the feild,i am not expecting much from him…
    Narsingh still needs heavy improvement…
    Lenz is no where near Roben
    Ricky and castaginos are real players will do well if we play 433..i hope they step up in to the plate..

  14. Anybody noticed one thing??After persie got subbed their was no one to understand sneijder in the feild,this guy sneijder is a jenious,poor Lenz,Williams,Narsingh is no where near the brilliance of sneijder…

  15. After watching the better part of half of both games, reading the reviews / analysis of those here and other places here is what I think Holland should look like for the next few months at least (assuming injured players return to full health):

    1 – Tim Krul
    2 – Ricardo van Rhijn
    3 – Johnny Heitinga
    4 – Bruno Martins Indi
    5 – Erik Pieters
    6 – Nigel de Jong
    7 – Ibrahim Afellay
    8 – Kevin Strootman
    9 – Robin van Persie
    10 – Wesley Sneijder
    11 – Arjen Robben
    12 – Maarten Stekelenburg
    13 – Gregory van der Wiel
    14 – Ron Vlaar
    15 – Joris Matijsen
    16 – Jetro Willems
    17 – Jordi Classie
    18 – Luciano Narsingh
    19 – Leroy Fer
    20 – Klaas Jan Huntelaar
    21 – Rafael van der Vaart
    22 – Dirk Kuyt
    23 – Michel Vorm

    Ricky van Wolfswinkel, Jermaine Lens and Eljero Elia really need to perform at club level to get into the squad.

    Keeper – I picked Tim Krul when in actual fact it could be either of the three starting as I don’t think there is that much seperating them, all are strong keepers but none are superstars. If I were LVG, I would choose the keeper on the best form at club level at the time of the next qualifying matches.

    Right Back – I think van Rhijn has claimed this position with his play recently but there will be open competition with van der Wiel if he can settle at PSG. The defence and offence will only get better as these two develop.

    Centre Back – Heitinga and Martins Indi should settle in nicely to the starting CB slots backed up by Vlaar as first man off the bench and Matijsen in the “Ooijer Role”. Now if Douglas is ever called up he gets thrown into the mix, maybe even as a starter moving Martins Indi to the bench and Matijsen into international retirement.

    Left Back – Willems, at this time in his development, is simply not strong enuff in defence and puts way too much stress on the left CB. If Pieters is healthy he should take his LB spot back. If not, lets try Martnins Indi at LB until Pieters is back. Willems should be called up to continue developing as he shows flashes of brilliance at times.

    Midfield Destroyer – This fits NDJ best, he is perfect for this role. Many of you here hate him but he is a world class defensive midfielder and will always be first to the loose ball and break up apposition attacks. Classie is a good cover man here and will be the man of the future at this position.

    Midfield Runner – Strootman showed this week that he is the man to fill this role, especially against Turkey. Strong in defense and excellent in transition. Fer will provide cover here and at destroyer and provide competition to all to prevent lax effort in the middle of the park.

    Right Wing – If Afellay can settle in at his new club he is the man to make the right more dynamic and flop wings with Robben to give a different look. Narsingh has performed well and looks like a useful player but has been wasteful and shown poor vision at times. Kuyt will provide veteran leadership giving cover on the right.

    Centre Forward – RVP is the man in this formation and no country can pull a cover man off the bench as strong in front of goal as KJH (the man knows how to score). Kuyt can perform here in emergency situations.

    Midfield Playmaker – Wes with cover from Raf; ’nuff said.

    Left Wing – Robben looked STRONG against Turkey and I think he could have ripped Hungary to shreds, its too bad he missed the game (Holland maybe could have scored 6). Narsingh will provide cover on the left.

    If the WC was starting in October, we’d be in BIG trouble as Goose says. BUT, we have the better part of 2 years and 15+ games to develop into a team that will be in the top five in Brasil!

    1. Don’t hold your breath on Nigel de Jong. LvG really wants a guy who can add to the attack. Nigel just doesn’t do that. There’s a reason they shipped him off to Italy, where defense is king.

      Also, Narsingh isn’t going to back up on the left as the right wing is his natural spot. He’s been productive in every game so far, whatever his flaws may be. Some of that may just be due to unfamiliarity with his teammates. He did lead the Eredivisie in assists last season. When you have his speed and acceleration you don’t need to be the trickiest dribbler. He was offsides too many times, but I think that’s just a matter of getting the timing down with his teammates. If you were to ask him he’d probably say they passed too late.

      Kuyt might not even be on the team in 2 years (32 y/o now). I’d rather hope that Ola John gets back on LvG’s radar.

      Same goes for Mathijsen, regardless of Douglas. He’s just lending his experience to the younger generation. God bless him.

  17. Yes,good analysis. You only forgot about De Vrij in defence,who would have probably played in the last two games had he not been injured. He will be in the squad for the next game,he or Douglas,and knowing Douglas is not LVG type of defender,De Vrij should be there at the expense of maybe Heitinga if he doesnt start to play for his club. Heitinga has experience and was good against Turkey,but if you dont play for your club,you should not play for oranje also. Also Van Gaal is not afraid to drop experience for youth…
    Bruma might also be considered. Played good for the U21 in the last game,was their best defender,and is playing regularly for HSV.
    For midfield,if some player of those you mentioned would be injured,we have Maher,Anita or the improving De Guzman to replace him in any midfield position.

  18. It is good that we win the first 2 games. We are also lucky that the opponents in this group may not be strong. The players need to stay focused and keep the winning mentality and not over confident. We probably qualify but not in any shape to challenge for the WC. Once qualified, we need to have many friendlies with stronger opponents (Brazil, Mexico, Argentine, Germany, England, Italy, Spain) to see where we are.

  20. @Petrovic – if you get called up to the senior team can you go back and play for the U-21’s????? I thought you can’t so I left de Vrij and Bruma out of consideration so they can shine at that level.

    I have a personal bias here, de Guzman should put on the red and white of Canada; not Oranje.

    1. Of course you can!!! Bruma was called up,played for senior team,but his form dropped and he is now playing for U21. Also same goes for Luuk de Jong,Wijnaldum.
      Maher also debuted for senior team and then went back to U21. As long as you are under 21/22 you can play for U21 team.

  21. LVG also has many chances to get these young players experiences considering the group we have.
    @OranjeRules: after watching Canada yesterday, de Guzman may not be enough to help. I do not know why the team played so bad.

  22. I partially agree with those of you who are critical about Sneijder. It can be seen from a plane that he lacks form and pace at the moment but I also udnerstand why he will always be in the 1st eleven: his set pieces! Two decisive goals came from his set pieces (vP vs Turkey and MI vs Hungary).. actually everytime he takes a corner or free kick there are at least half chances or mess in opposite penalty box.
    This team only played 2 games togeather (and even not in the same lineup) and I only see them get better and better. I also like LvG experiments but I wouldnt liked if he calls up new players every time, cause it would be too much anda big mess. IMO he should have a shortlist of approx 26 to max. 30 players and only call new ones in case of injury crisis. Dont get me wrong: its everything OK with competition for places but we are also badly in a need of continuity and gameplay bulit around reliable players in defence, midfield, attack.. If LvG cahnges his lineup all the time it will be nothing but confusion.
    From these two matches we have something good to build on for the future.
    I am also of the opinion that Willems is not that bad as some of you see him, IMO he is ready! AC Milan for example would kill to have a left back of his capabilities.
    I dont think Maduro (mentioned many times) has any future in Oranje as there are many younger and better players.. Even Douglas is probably not needed as we have enough Dutch defenders in all but the worst injury crisis.
    I also like LvG for dropping some “star” players – he sent a clear message to all players that no-one`s spot in the team is for granted.
    I would like to point out that I really like this new Oranje and all the youngsters as they showed they have the guts to play very important competitive matches – and they all played good with great spirit!
    I can not wait for next matches in October!
    My Oranje blood is circulating much better through my veins and summer wounds are healed!!
    HUP HOLLAND!!

  23. I personally feel that given a few more games, Narsingh will establish himself as Holland’s right winger for years to come, unlike Lens or Babel, say what you Narsingh like the younger Robben on the left, gets past his man..nuthing to fancy, just a dummy, a shimmy to the left and bam knock it forward to the right with an explosive burst of speed and accelerates to the touchline…and nearly always the cross he clips back into the penalty box is inch perfect..and most times end up with a goal…ofcourse with more confidence..he will start mixing this winger knack with fancy stepovers, cutting in, double dummy(pretend to cross but keep dribbling towards goal), go for 1-2’s inside the box, or even hazard a long distancer himself…all am saying is sky is the limit for one Luciano Narsingh…remember the name 😀 😀

    my eleven for Brazil 😀

    Krul
    van Rijn
    Heitinga
    Martins Indi
    Pieters
    Strootman
    Classie
    Narsingh
    Sneijder
    Robben
    van Persie

    1. I respectfully disagree .
      Narsingh is just a dutch shaun wright philips . I don’t like this type of winger .
      I do hope Elia will gain his form and take the right flank with robben on the left . Afellay can be an excellent sub for both .
      Depay can grow into an exceptional player , too .

  25. Regarding Sneijder , I think Italy ruined him .
    He is the best playmaker in the world when he plays with defensive teams e.g Inter , Oranje with BvM .

    Perhaps he needs to move to EPL . Just Perfect for him .

    Or perhaps he needs a competition with VdV . it will be excellent to motivate both of them .

  26. I only watched half game thanks to espn3 but I do feel most of you are thinking waaaaay ahead of time. There are two years before WC in brazil… 2 years is a LONG time. It is the difference of being World Champions that didn’t lose in regular time and a team that couldn’t collect a single point in Euro! Heck in a couple of months, we went from being the team that won 9 out of 10 games in qualifications to a team that couldn’t string two passes together at the Euros!

    I will draw some comparisons between this team and the Team we saw during Euro 2012.
    1- This team plays with Energy
    2- They do not panic when under pressure
    3- Defence is getting better (no goals against us in two games – penalties don’t count) while Bulgaria put two past Steks back in May.
    4- The system the players are trying to implement is clear.

  27. SamNY, we are not ready now, but we have 2 years to get ready. At least the direction the team is heading give me a more optimistic view. The group that we have will give Oranje’s young players time and experiences to be better. Had we drawn into a tougher group, who knows? We need these players to stay humble so they keep striving to be better. Baring major injuries to many players or LVG “goes nuts”, I do not see why we cannot qualify. Winning the WC is a different. That’s why I hope after we qualify we will have good friendlies against strong teams. I know I get ahead of myself but I cannot stop dreaming about Oranje is the first European player to win in America. There is a first to everything and 3 loss is enough. I like the fact that they make mistakes, learn and we still can win. I also like the fact that they show that they learn by improving in the next game or during the game. I use Sneijder as an example. He may be worse in 2 years time, who knows, but we have a chance to get Clasie and other like Maher, Emmanuelson….to be Sneijder’s backup so at least we have a decent chance in Brazil. We cannot count on 1 player. I see Strootman as the potential new captain of this team. Clasie and BMI as the backup.

    1. @hein – my point was that Sniejder seems to be getting slower and in two years Arjen Robben might be slower. Even though Lens was good yesterday – I don’t think he has the speed of Afellay, Narsingh and obviously Robben.

      Just because these players did an okay job in two games, doesn’t give them an automatic place in the WC lineup. I honestly would give only 1 players an automatic starting birth if he’s fit… Arjen Robben – all the others should show consistent good performances and then fight to get a spot. For example, Stekelenberg should be dropped from the first team now because he keeps making mistakes. His dropped ball against Belgium, his early dive against Germany etc etc.

  28. As for Robben, the Turkey game showed he has all his speed still intact. There are very few players indeed in the world who can compete with his speed and technique, and it’s especially impressive considering his age.

    I like this team. It seems they are playing with energy again, people are showing the fighting spirit and at times the ball is moving around again with speed. We have a long way to go, but even this new and untested defense is miles in front of what we had during the BvM era. Strootman, Clasie, Fer will be crucial to Netherland’s success and I think Narsingh will develop into a clinical fast winger. With Robben on the other side, they are ready to wreak havoc in the enemy’s defense.

    And we are still waiting for Pieters to come back from injury.

    1. @OhYeah – yes Robben is still the most valuable player on the team but that is now. In 2014 things could be changed. Robben would be 30 years old and with all the injuries he had during his career – he could even be retired!

  29. Congrats to oranje in both games. Just wanna say that LVG has matured as a coach. I kept saying during the euros that an army with two generals is worse than one with zero. That’s exactly what happened then. WE had 11 generals on the field..way too many, and no one was putting in the extra effort, going for the loose ball…they all thought they were special and others would take care of their tedious tasks.

    Introducing LVG, he started the games with only 3 veterans, RVP, Wesly and Robben and a team of youngsters around them. That’s exactly the way it should be, youth and experience. That’s all you need to go far. The youth makes up for their lack of experience by going into every challenge and fighting for every loose ball. The experienced players, knowing this, can focus on covering the technical gaps and creating greatness.

    Good god, we had to wait 5 games for a win, but LVG gave us 2 in a row. Here’s to hoping this shall continue until july 2014.

  30. 2 wins are 2 wins are 2 wins -:)
    2 wins in a row with a very young team, GD 6-1, total domination, a lot of maturity, a serious and decisive coach.
    We may be in for another long winning streak. As wins pile up so does confidence and then sky is the limit. And LVG will make sure they don’t become complacent.
    Romania though will be trickier than both Turkey and Hungary.

    1. If we win agaist Romania, all stress will go away and we can concentrate on building a better team, not just result. I think that will be a very important game. Afterwards, we can sleep easier 🙂

  31. SamNY: I agreed with you about Lens (more of a striker than typical winger) and players should fight for the spot, no automatic spot. I also think of Afellay as a typical winger, not sure if that is where he will play for his club. Robben will be old, and he is the only good winger we have since Overmars. If Bert can play 4-2-3-1 with Robben and Kuyt as wingers, I’m sure we are fine with Narsingh (perhaps Afellay, Lens, Ola John, Depay…whoever we have)… We know this is coming. Don’t forget Robben is easy to get injured as well. This will be LVG’s issue to figure out. That is why I like it that we have time for younger players to get experiences, still win and qualify for WC. Hopefully they all develop well.

  32. van Gaal had so much bad luck in the 2002 qualifiers, karma is giving him the good luck this time round! Obvious penalty when Clasie handballed, red card and penalty, 2-2, ten men, anything could have happened…

    Unsuccessful Holland qualifying campaigns were historically the thinnest margins… eg, 1982, the first match when Thijssen headed against the bar v Ireland, a win there would have eventually seen Holland pip France, and European football history might have been different – Platini may not now be UEFA President ha ha!

    The wafer thin margins this time are going Holland’s way, Turkey were so unlucky hitting the bar etc, so this is good.

    So pleased for BMI to get his goal… lovely athletic player, but a bit flaky… I saw a lot of those early matches for Feyenoord and it was tough for him in a struggling young team but those experiences will stand him in good stead, hopefully. I don’t think there are many players who so are clearly up for it, I love his wholehearted attitude.

  33. I agree with Goose – whereas I get a ‘tingle” everytime the team walks on and have great expectations for a classic/fun game….it has not been there lately.vG has the audacity to do things HE wants and doesnt care what anyone thinks. The team is exciting the players WANT to win, they get to the ball earlier. And now when a long ball comes in or an opposing player threatens, I think our youngsters are there en masse to slaughter whatever comes at them. Yes mistakes are made but hey that makes the game exciting. As so many of you have said “I’m Lovin it”
    Hungary were amateurish, last goal where was the Marker that stands on the ball till defence is organized ? Thats taught when you are 12 ???? (Great thinking Clasie)

    1. yeah 😀 i liked Clasie’s pass to lens a lot 🙂 . i thought it was Sneijder but in the replay i was surprised .

      I don’t know why i think van gaal won’t give a call-up to nigel de jong again .
      Van gaal tends to play real football , a DMF who can build-up and defend and destroy at the same time like clasie , a pure destroyer like de jong is not type of DMF that van gaal likes .
      perhaps schaars or anita can get a call-up . Schaars plays really good for Sporting Lisbon .

  35. Andorra first, then Romania then Estonia. I’d like to see 5 win then I feel better. Any slip can be costly, but I like our chance so far. For that 82 WC, wasn’t that when Spain defeat some team 12-1! I do not know if we need De Jong. I like Clasie, Strootman so far. Can Anita play holding midfield? Now is a good time to introduce young players considering the circumstance we have right now (not tough group, new coach, new young players…) but not too many at a time.

    1. DeJong’s karate kick still makes it hard for me to assess him neutrally, but I read that he completed 94% of his passes last year in EPL. Maybe he hasn’t gotten enough credit.

    2. The biggest score in WC1982 is Hungary 10:1 El Salvador.

      For the upcoming matches in October, the young lads of Oranje should be very careful when facing Romania in Bucharest. The opponent is not that weak.

    3. Hien. Spain defeated Malta 12-1. First half ended 3-1 and then floodgates opened. I am so totally not missing deJong, thank you LVG. I do not know Anita and can’t make suggestions but whoever is called will be so much better than a slow bulldozer who always makes a safe useless pass. The new players have brought fresh air and a lot of excitement. The only fear I have is falling into complacency but LVG is too old a warrior to let that happen. Fingers crossed we should win all this group games with a GD 35-5. 🙂

  36. WC 2014 is 2 years away we have enough time to build a good team.

    There will be changes during the process but we’ve more options for our defense, midfield, center forwards and wingers!!!.

    Competition is the key to success. Experienced players have now seen there are good youngsters who really want a place in the national team so that will help the whole team.

  37. LVG has already tried new players but there are many waiting for their chace to shine:

    Elia, Wolfswinkel, Douglas, Bruma, Aanholt, Büttner, Wijnaldum, Emanuelson, Maduro, etc…

    1. hasnt Elia been given more than enough chances to ‘shine’. The national team is not a place where you can improve. You do that at club level and bring your A game for oranje. Elia has been given many many many chances…

  39. I know that we have to bury the past, but I can’t stop thinking how negligence Van Marwijk was in believing/trusting Van Bommel to be his box-to-box player. Strootman or Fer definitely would have fitted that role perfectly.
    I know, its easier to reflect on the mistakes now then in real time. But I consider that to be a gross miss judgement by VM. Didn’t he have notes saying “De Jong and Van Bommel can’t run with the ball very static, need a box to box player” What bothers me the most is that he had the answer sitting right next to him, Strootman.

  40. Many coaches did what VM did. They rewarded older players who had been fighting for the team and stick with the past success (strategy, players…). It was a common mistake in most cases. It is easier to make changes with new coach, no attachment and looks from outside in when selecting players.
    Can Wijnaldum play as winger?

    1. This. VM stuck with the hold crew who’d had success in the WC, and it didn’t work at Euro. It was time for younger players to fill certain positions, which is precisely what is happening now.

  41. GOALKEEPERS:

    Stekelenburg
    Krul
    Vorm

    DEFENDERS:

    V.Rhijn
    Wiel
    Janmaat
    Heitinga
    M.Indi
    Pieters
    Willems
    Boulahrouz
    Douglas
    Bruma
    Maduro
    Aanholt
    Viergever
    Büttner

    MIDFIELDERS:

    Sneijder
    Fer
    Strootman
    Emanuelson
    Vaart
    Afellay
    Clasie
    Schaars
    Nigel
    Maher

    FORWARDS:

    Narsingh
    Persie
    Robben
    Huntelaar
    Kuyt
    Elia
    Wijnaldum
    Lens
    Wolfswinkel
    Castaignos
    Ola John
    Luuk
    Siem

    We have a very nice mix of youth and experienced players 🙂

  43. LVG should think of the position of KJH and RVP i reckon VDV is not good enough anymore.. BMI did pretty good,,you people reckon VDW will be back in Oranje soon, or VR the new man? What would BVM do? or MVB?

    haha; sorry..just wanted to write a post with as many initials as possible (sure i missed a lot!)

  44. reflecting on BvM – Italy and France won worldcups in the past and then slumped into humiliation just like Oranje did only because the coach stuck to his old guns in the following tournament. BvM is not any different.

    Also LvG messed it up same way in 2002 – he stuck to the old guard and Oranje didn’t make it to the World Cup – it took someone called Marco Van Bastern to re-invent the team.

    Simple really.

    1. One point in defense to BvM, the decline of his recipe was very rapid. In 6 months everything collapsed while it was working for 3 years like clockwork.

      But what’s done done… LVG brought a needed refresh. We have to see if he can also deliver like clockwork. Clockwork Orange 🙂

  45. @hien: yes I forgot about Anita but indeed he is a hot prospect.

    Van Basten didn’t reinvent anything! Sneijer, Vaart, Robben, Nigel, etc had their debuts under Advocaat and under LVG so San Marco did’t reinvent the team.

  46. Marco came in 2006 and Oranje exited by that famous match with Portugal. Euro 2008 group matches was exciting for me, only outwitted by Hiddink in elimination QF. Anyway, if VDV plays exceptionally with Hamburg and Sneijder play drops drastically, why not replacing Sneijder with VDV? Competition is good. No one is guaranteed, even the captain. Example, see Van Bommel in June/July this year!

  47. Can we discuss some surprise players who might earn a few caps during qualifying and maybe even a shot at the WC in Brazil?

    @ Jan, could you do a piece on players we have not mentioned much here but who might have a shot come June 2014 ….. ex.: Rodney Sneijder & Davy Klassen.

    I am really curious about players in the dark that have the potential to do big things in the future!

    1. I keep an eye on Dutch youth teams and some Dutch academy’s. If you are curious about the talents for the near future to look out for, I can name a couple:

      Center defenders:

      * Karim Rekik (Manchester City)
      * Nathan Ake (Chelsea)
      * Riechedly Bazoer (PSV)
      * Jorrit Hendrix (PSV)
      * Stephano Denswil (Ajax)
      * Terence Kongolo (Feyenoord)

      Right back:

      * Kenny Tete (Ajax)

      Midfield:

      * Thom Haye (AZ)
      * Kyle Ebecilio (Arsenal)
      * Tonny Vilhena (Feyenoord)

      Attack:

      * Ricardo Kisnha (Ajax)(IF his recovery has worked out)
      * Anass Achahbar (Feyenoord)
      * Memphis Depay (PSV)

      For Brazil most these guys might be too young. Players that might be mature enough in time:

      * Marco van Ginkel (Vitesse)
      * Ilian Boccara (Ajax)

      The two players you name are not good enough IMO.

      I will indulge myself naming one very young lad who will never be ready for Brazil 2014, but who is getting much buzz already at Ajax for being the next big thing and is also selected for the U15 Dutch NT:

      * Abdelhak Nouri (Ajax)

      Here is hoping he chooses for the Dutch NT and not Morocco.

      For the rest it is waiting who stands up in Eredivisie. Who had predicted the rise of Clasie or BMI? I know Feyenoord fans who were with their nose in the youth games, not having been able to predict this. Best example is of course Ruud van Nistelrooy in the past decade. Not a guy that was selected for the Dutch NT youth teams, started to stand up in his own tempo.

      Some of the above names will fade out and never become big, other no names in the youth will rise to become a star at older age. That’s also the fun part of all of it.

      I read people saying that much can happen in 2 years time. Look at WC 2010 and Euro 2012. However that’s the road downward. The road up is much harder. In 2004 we had to rebuild also and it took at least 4 years to be able to kick some ass (Italy and France on Euro 2008) and get the respect of the world. If you want to make the argument that the end result was not much different from WC 2006, you could make that case. Then it becomes 6 years time with generation Robben, Sneijder, VDV, RVP that were phased in around 2004 (or after that) and when the old generation was dropped or stopped. Don’t have expectations for Brazil. Enjoy the qualification. Enjoy the rebuilding, but know that even with Ballon d’Or quality players (IMO Sneijder deserved it in 2010) it took us quite some time to get to almost WC winning level, if this generation of players is getting there in the first place. If we zoom out from the Turkey and Hungary game, it is crystal clear we are playing football of pretty low level. FIFA number 20-25 level. Against serious opposition we get spanked with the way we have been playing. Germany and Italy will be our opponents in the next 12 months I think, so we will get our reality check soon enough.

      However we should not feel defeated about that. We should have our own metric for success and our own timescale for manifesting things. It must be ambitious, but also realistic. Van Gaal is an expert working with new kids and I am sure he will be able to get the most out of them. 6 points so far with probably the most inexperienced back line in Dutch modern football history. 3 defenders with the age of 21, 20 and 18 years. There is to find fun and pride in that also.

      Cheers

      PS Bruma for right center back is maybe underrated. He was the best defender in HSV’s first Bundesliga game. In the second game he was put right back, where he becomes less good. In the Dutch U21 game against Austria he was good. Here is hoping he is allowed to develop a whole year on right center back in the Bundesliga for this season. That turns boys into men.

      1. You make a lot of valid points and your facts are accurate. I think though something is missing from the estimates. Although it took 4-6 years for the last generation to produce a world cup final, the new generation as of right now is playing with the wind on its back. Recent successes such as achieving a world cup final always have a huge positive psychological impact. The feeling that we can do it again, is a real factor that can shorten the path to success.

        Surely, we need a lot of improvement. But I can already see the Strootman/Fer duo being as good or even better than the DeJong/VanBommel two years from now. And I am focusing on that because the way the game is played today, having two super athletes for DMs can be the difference between an ok team and a team that can accomplish a semi-final appearance in the next world cup.

        time will tell if we can speed up the road to the top of the world ….

        1. IMO I am even optimistic in my estimates. That’s because I take the accomplishments of past NT’s as a starting point. From that I say more or less, that the current generation could grow at the same rate and they are of the same quality.

          In truth I believe that the current generation is less gifted. On the other hand there is the van Gaal bonus who tends to to well with younger players as he can mold them into his system more easily. This makes it harder to read what will happen.

          What I also look at, is if players are able to become their teams defining players at a top club in the world in a title run or even a CL run. If we look back at 2010, Sneijder was such a player at Inter and Robben at Bayern. At the WC both players were involved in key moments for the NT. It were Sneijder and Robben who had no problem to beat a country like Brazil or even installed fear in the opponents heart. In the situation before the 2-1 against Brazil, Juan gives away the corner out of nervousness for Robben. He could easily have made a throw in from it. He didn’t. A small detail in the match that gives away so much about the mental side of the game.

          The belief you speak of does not come out of the sky and is only partially extracted from past NT performances. Players display belief at club level already. Leading their teams towards the ultimate club reward. Winning a national title in a big competition, an international club title or both (Sneijder).

          If you look at it now (this can change due to transfers), only Robben and RVP might be in such a position for the next tournament and with RVP there is a problem, like there is a problem with Hazard in the Belgium NT. Sometimes you have those players that do less for country. In the past Luc Nilis also was famous for being great for club, but bad for country. So even if RVP is able to do great things for United, especially with him we can’t count ourselves rich, as the transcended value of that to NT is not 1:1. Inter is past it and Sneijder is not fit enough to do another 2010. I also am reluctant in believing Robben has a very long career at the top anymore.

          The rest of the NT players have yet to get to a big club, let alone become a prime contributor there.

          Fer and Strootman.

          I don’t really rate them. The reason for that is the character of their game. They both have many things going on for themselves. However they both lack handling speed. I deem that characteristic as very important. This is not exposed at many Eredivisie matches or in WC qualification. When pressure is mounting, you need players capable to football themselves out of it. However Strootman is developing into a bulldozer. Winning all, or many of his personal duels. He looked great at the Turkish corner flag, throwing himself at the situation. This characteristic becomes of even bigger value in DM where he was pretty good against Turkey. At right midfield against Turkey and Hungary football wise he was poor. So poor that even his strong side (long ball distribution like the ball on Narsingh) was off against Hungary, exemplified with by kicking a ball into space a certain time, where nobody was even walking wearing an Orange shirt. His short passing was painful to watch.

          Fer is even a worse case. With this guy the discrepancy between having many things going on for himself and not having high handling speed is even bigger. Fer can score with head and feet, can run box to box because of great stamina, has leadership quality’s, has a good penalty, has a good through pass (vision and execution) and maybe a few other things as well. But his first touch is poor, his ability to find the football solution quickly is not great and he is simply wired in such a way that he wants to solve many problems in a physical way. So his ability to speed up the game and football us out of pressure is not really there. He often solves problems by running more. Lower paradigm football.

          This kind of football will give you a secure feeling against the lesser opponents but is unfit for the top. It can maybe bring you to the Moon, but not to Mars. For me the paradigm is “handling speed” and the players who have that are Sneijder, Clasie, Anita and maybe Maher.

          Obviously one can build on the other. A team full of players only generating game speed, won’t crack the code either. Fer started to blossom, when Brama did the dirty work for him and when he was surrounded with creative players like Tadic and Chadli at Twente. In such a system he can be of value for the NT too, as scoring goals from midfield is a great asset to have in your team. Well, in any team actually. However I am not as excited as you, or many pundits who can’t wait for a Fer-Strootman axis on the midfield. I look forward to Clasie. A real game reader and speed enhancer (though against Turkey he made the game slower by not turning open). Many people have missed the fact that Turkey subbed off a midfielder around the ’70 minute and brought in a forward, making football easier for Fer and Strootman.

          I think you get better results with Fer and Strootman in this qualification group, but the investment must go to higher paradigm football for greater return in 2 years. That means Clasie and Anita. We got away with 2 investment games on Clasie winning 2-0 and 1-4. If Clasie’s handball in the box was seen against Hungary, that is a penalty and a second yellow. A 10 men game would have turned the odds, especially with that many minutes still to play. What a gift, as I think every of his 3 halves so far he has been playing, he improved. The climax was that fast free kick, getting the opponent off guard and scoring an easy goal. Or that pressing moment in the second half, after he lost the ball himself, ending into a distance shot from him, leading to a corner IIRC. Those are for me the windows to the future I become happy from. Those are the moments we have to build on IMO. pressing, getting into the opponents OODA loop, play football as fast as possible.

          Cheers

          1. Smart stuff, DRB. Haven’t seen enough of Fer to judge his handling speed… but let’s hope we haven’t seen the best yet of Strootman. He has great sense on the field… probably good at that OODA stuff. 😉

          2. thanks for taking the time to reply in such detail. I am in general agreement with your assessment, however, I would like to add a couple of points.

            1. Strootman. What he doesn’t have as ball handling speed he can make it up with his excellent positioning during attacks. If you notice, he knows where to sit and move during corners, fouls and other set pieces. Look at the goal he scored against Finland in Helsinki. RVP style…So Stroot is not just an incredible bulldozer, he can also be a serious contributor in offense.

            2. The duo Strootman/Fer: Although at the moment, your assessment is spot on, Fer has 2 years to improve and become a better contributor in the offense like Strootman. He can learn not to use his enormous physical strength but also to complement it with better positioning. I would wage a bet that if you had 2 “Strootmans” you could see Mars up close 🙂

            3. Ball handling speed versus bulldozing: No doubt the investment in ball handling speed is an excellent idea at the moment since it does not appear we have serious contenders for WK qualification. I would argue though that both styles of play have merits and can be used depending on the occasion. It is not a bad idea to have the constant pressing in the middle as a weapon that can be used on a given day. I think both ways are valid, sure we can do more investment in ball handling now but certainly a pragmatic approach requires both options.

            We will certainly miss having players who just played a CL final in the WK2014 but we will have some players who were in the final last time. That is definitely a plus.

          3. I think Strootman and Fer are fighting for 1 spot, with Clasie behind and Sneijder up front.
            Strootman/Fer plays the joker role, able to switch between Dm and RM depending on the circumstances.

            Leading up to Brazil, yes 2 years is not enough. the return on investment and maturity level should be the EC. That is why I am very critical of Willems, because he just invites opponents to come in without previous notice.
            Don’t get me wrong, but these guys can be ready with they play Champions League football.
            I hope Frank de Boer takes advantage of playing against Real and City because it is also a good training ground for Van Rhijn.
            Names are not enough they need to test themselves, that is also why I don’t see out back four not playing with Heitinga or Van der Wiel. At the end of the day both have WC credentials and nobody can take that away from them.
            It is easy to say “I am ready for the WC!” but have no idea of what its like….experience plays and pays

        2. It seems that nowadays a soccer player’s lifespan is much shorter than it used to be. If 22 is still too young and 28 getting too old you only have a maximum of 6 years in which a player is deemed solid enough to compete on the highest level!? If that holds true for the Netherlands it should do so for any country and with that in mind I think Oranje isn’t that bad off.

          A good team with lesser players but superior tactics can still beat a team with better players but lesser tactics. IMO that’s exactly where Van Gaal will be the difference.

        1. Thanks Mohamed,

          Peter van Ooijen is one of those guys that stood up all of the sudden. In the youth ranks he was generally not seen as such a big deal. His debut was against a very weak team and so the only thing I can say is that we have to wait and see how he fairs against tougher opposition. If he had been a prodigy in the youth, we could have had more anticipation. For now, he has everything to prove. Brazil is very far away for him.

          If you want to watch an upcoming midfielder this year (as I think Peter will not make many minutes), Boccara from Ajax might be an option. I think he has a chance to make quite some minutes and be of added value in the minutes he gets.

          Cheers

      3. Hey, nice post! Some pretty valid names in there. I remember Nathan Ake as a Midfielder actually. He has way to good ball control and shooting coordination to be a defender in my opinion. I Don’t think Rodney Sneijder will get a chance as you pointed out. Whereas Davy Klaassen is in my book one of the two bar three purest dutch talents in recent years along with Memphis Depay. He has tough competition in Ajax, but he is a wonderful Bergkamp type player. I actually am quite sure he will be Netherland’s next great forward if given a chance. Agreed on Van Ginkel, Vitesse’s core at such a young age, and I was quite pleased with Boccara’s debut. We shall see 🙂

        p.s. I think that despite the bad euros we can give Italy and Germany a run for their money. Did they impress that much in these two games???
        Germany-Far Oer 3-0 ; Austria-Germany 1-2 (easily could have been 2-2)
        Bulgaria-Italy 2-2 (Bulgaria winning by far on game play) ; Malta-Italy 0-2

        so Germany is Austria level and Italy is Malta level? not quite sure about that. I think in games between two top 10-15 teams anything can happen in official matches, maybe with the exception of Spain that clearly is stronger then others (see Euro won playing way below par).

      4. thank you for your insight and analysis! very thorough and helpful!

        you should also do articles every now and then! am curious to hear your oranje story as per jan’s request!

      5. Wonderful article on the talents in Eredivisie.

        Maybe you can consider Davy Pröpper from Vitesse. He has already amassed 58 appearances for the senior team, scoring 4 goals, while having also represented the U19 & U21 teams.

        Nothing was mentioned about Kelvin Leerdam, who is doing great things for both Feyenoord and the U21. He can play as a DM or RB and has 86 senior club appearances since his debut in 2008. He must be overlooked despite making 11 U21 appearances to date, helping the U21 qualify for the 2013 European U21 Football Championship.

        Another name is Jerson Cabral, who had just left Feyenoord for FC Twente. He is a goal scoring winger, with 29 appearances and 7 goals for Feyenoord last season. While he is rarely mentioned, I think 2012-2013 will be his break-through season.

        How about Ouasim Bouy who had left Jong Ajax to join Juventus and is currently on loan at Brescia in Serie B. Many had doubted his move but i am sure he will leave a significant mark in Italy unlike Elia.

        Just my ten cents worth of opinion. Hope it value adds to the list here.

  48. Great piece DRB 300 – Always good to read your analysis and cool you’re keeping an eye out on our youth. This whole piece could have been an article here. You should send it to Jan’s email and I am sure he would be happy to feature it as a main article on the Youth of oranje -Seen and Un seen 🙂

    1. Thanks Carlos,

      For now I am already happy if my posts are shown in the comments section as I am under the impression they don’t show up as a result of the links I have used in the passed. With posts with many links in it, I always get a message along the lines of:

      “Your comment is awaiting moderation.” and after that I never see my username popping up in the “recent comments” section. However I am always happy to add to the blog.

      Cheers

  49. DRB300
    Only talents with footballing intelligence and very hardworking players will come up as good,Though the mentors or coach plays a significant role in development.Above all t fate(Injury) can harm a career as well..

  51. With Narsingh, Lens, Clasie, Fer, Strootman, Elia, Wijnaldum, Willems, BMI, Douglas, etc…we have a very competitive team because we still have Robben, Persie, Huntelaar, Sneijder, Afellay, Nigel, Vaart!!! well our future looks very bright.

  52. This is actually my whole list of players worthy of a place in 2014. They can be seasoned, experienced players, upcoming youngsters who might leave a mark in the Eredivisie in 2012-2013 season, or simply the latest young sensation to be unleashed and make the world take a second look.

    GKs:
    Maarten Stekelenburg
    Michel Vorm
    Tim Krul
    Erwin Mulder
    Kenneth Vermeer
    Jasper Cillessen
    Jeroen Zoet

    CBs
    John Heitinga
    Bruno Martins Indi
    Ron Vlaar
    Douglas
    Stefan de Vrij
    Jeffrey Gouweleeuw
    Nick Viergever
    Jeffrey Bruma
    Bram Nuytinck
    Virgil van Dijk
    Dirk Marcellis
    Nathan Aké
    Karim Rekik
    Terence Kongolo
    Miquel Nelom

    LBs
    Erik Pieters
    Jetro Willems
    Alexander Büttner
    Daley Blind
    Dico Koppers
    Patrick van Aanholt

    RBs
    Gregory van der Wiel
    Kelvin Leerdam
    Ricardo van Rhijn
    Daryl Janmaat

    CMs/DMs
    Nigel de Jong
    Jordy Clasie
    Kevin Strootman
    Adam Maher
    Stijn Schaars
    Leroy Fer
    Vurnon Anita
    Wout Brama
    Hedwiges Maduro
    Ouasim Bouy
    Marco van Ginkel
    Ilan Boccara

    AMs/WGs
    Wesley Sneijder
    Rafael van der Vaart
    Arjen Robben
    Ibrahim Afellay
    Siem de Jong
    Luciano Narsingh
    Georginio Wijnaldum
    Urby Emanuelson
    Rajiv van La Parra
    Tonny Trindade de Vilhena
    Erik Falkenburg

    FWs/STs
    Robin van Persie
    Klaas-Jan Huntelaar
    Luuk de Jong
    Ola John
    Ricky van Wolfswinkel
    Eljero Elia
    Jerson Cabral
    Bas Dost
    Lorenzo Ebecilio
    Luc Castaignos
    Dirk Kuyt
    Jeremain Lens
    Ryan Babel
    Davy Klaassen
    Jeroen Lumu
    Anass Achahbar
    Elvis Manu
    Memphis Depay

    Let’s hope LVG can mix the seniors and youngsters in a balanced team with experience, energy and desire en route to our first World Cup trophy, or second Euro championship. It could be 2014, 2016, 2018… Never mind the wait. Better late than never as I am always behind the team, be it in good times or bad times.

  56. ——————Van Persie————————
    Robben———————————Narsingh—-
    —————————————————-
    —-Sneijder——————–Van Der Vaart———-
    —————–Strootman————————–
    Buttner———————————-V. Rhijn—–
    ———-Martins Indi————-Heitinga————
    ————————Krul————————-

    Willing to change the keeper and center backs, Maybe afellay for van der vaart

  58. Gud on ya Buttner!!
    I love how dutch idols always get a song, it was the famous “ruudd ruudd ruudd” after a every goal
    now its
    “oooooo robiin vaan persiiee..”

  59. Buttner Review is simple,

    Pros
    Best crosses, better than pieters, way better than wilems, better than narsingh
    Ability to beat defenders
    Makes excellent runs,
    Can defend well

    Cons
    Sometimes positioning is off,
    Fouls plenty

    (note this is only from one game, subject to change)

    Apparently Sevilla is beating real madrid 1-0 and Maduro was playing defensive midfield, I did not see the game, but I would hope he played great and suspecting that since he hasn’t been subbed off. I’m just saying on twitter, many people are commenting on him good, so just a guess he did good

    By the way watched plenty of the ac milan match, Emanuelson is playing very good, could be put in the midfield

    and Nigel De Jong, is not playing good. lets leave it at that. he is gonna have to show more to play for holland

    1. sample twitter comments on maduro

      But the unsung hero for me was Maduro. He put in some tackles, won headers and was so calm on the ball.

      Muy bien Maduro. Cicinho increíble. (very good maduro)

      Partidazo de todos, todos, tods…Y Maduro me ha impresionado.
      (maduro has impressed me)

  60. Sorry been a bit busy with work. But to respond to some of my previous posts…
    VdV does fit our new system better than Sneijder. Don’t get high on our good results. The likes of Spain, Germany, Portugal, Belgium, Brazil, Argentina would still beat us. We need a lot more solidarity in midfield. Sneijder is one of my favorite Oranje but he looks pedestrian in this side. It’s exciting times and a lot of new talent. Anyone who saw the Manure (united) game knows that Buttner deserves a callup

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