Ibrahim Ayyub gives his opinion on what went right and what went wrong during Netherlands 3-1 win over Tunisia.
Greetings from Mexico City again. The Oranje wrapped up the group stage with a comfortable 3-1 victory over Tunisia to win their Group. Ending the group stage with back-to-back wins was great as they get ready for the knockout stages.
THE GOOD
No one can complain about slow starts concerning this Oranje team. It took the Oranje just seventeen minutes to be up 2-0 against Sweden. For an encore, it only took them seven minutes to go up 2-0 against Tunisia. Tunisia gifted the Oranje with an own goal courtesy of Skhiri in the third minute. Brian Brobbey then scored his third goal of the World Cup four minutes later. Perhaps Brobbey is answer to the prayers for a striker that the Oranje has sorely missed. His fine performances ensure that Weghorst and Depay are not the starting choice up front.
The Oranje concluded the group stage with ten goals and conceding four goals. Five different players scoring in three matchs is a welcomed sight. Another welcomed sight was seeing Justin Kluivert get his World Cup debut, and to remind us how time flies. It was nearly thirty years ago when Kluivert featured for the Oranje in the 1998 World Cup. It’s a nice way of bringing the past to the present involving father and son Oranje players. The last time this occurred was in 2014 with Daley Blind representing the Oranje after his father, Danny Blind, represented the Oranje in the 90s, as an unused substitute in both 1990 and 1994 World Cups, but he did feature in Euro 92 and 96.
THE BAD
Well, besides being told that the FIFA Fan Fest in Polanco, Mexico City was going to show the Holland Tunisia, and then ended up showing Japan v Sweden instead, so I had to watch the match at a Hooters, there were some negatives. Conceding a goal against the woeful Tunisian team is a minor complaint, but it was also not a ringing endorsement on the performance of the backline. That goal will serve as a reminder that this defense is still vulnerable. The Oranje failed to keep a clean sheet in all three group stage matches, and that should give something Koeman to work on and make the players know there’s still work to be done.
Furthermore, failing to score more goals after such a quick start was a bit disappointing. We got spoiled when we saw the Oranje score five times against Sweden, and a route seemed on the horizon against the hapless Tunisians. It doesn’t happen often that the Oranje blowout teams at the World Cup. The first route was a 4-1 victory over Bulgaria followed by a 4-0 victory against Argentina in 1974, a 5-1 victory against Austria in 1978, a 5-0 victory against South Korea in 1998, and a 5-1 victory against Spain in 2014. What matters is the win and the three points, but this was a wasted chance for players to score more goals and also entertain their fans.
THE UGLY
The Netherlands win Group F and what is their reward? A Round of 32 clash against Morocco. Talk about the luck of the draw. Other group winners such as Argentina got Cape Verde and England got Congo. Yet, the Oranje got Morocco who are one of the best teams from Africa, and semi-finalists from the last World Cup. That should be enough for the Oranje to not underestimate the Moroccans and take them seriously. If the Oranje advance, they then will face Canada. Hopefully Koeman and the leaders make sure that they do not look ahead to Canada
Unfortunately, the fact the Round of 32 match is to be played in Monterrey, Mexico is another disadvantage for the Oranje. Mexicans have not gotten over about the Arjen Robben penalty call during their Round of 16 elimination at the 2014 World Cup. The defeat resulted in the popular chant “¡No era penal!” (It wasn’t a penalty) based on the Robben penalty that still stings to this day with El Tri fans. Hopefully the Oranje faithful will pack the stadium in Monterrey and be loud, since it seems unlikely that home fans in attendance will be neutral during the match.