Netherlands coach Danny Blind has confirmed that he will be trying out a defensive formation during the friendlies with Wales and Germany.
- By Michael Bell
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After missing out on the European Championships due to losses to Iceland, Turkey and the Czech Republic, Blind believes his side is no longer capable of dominating with a 4-3-3 formation. The coach is set to change to a more defensive tactic, which may be a return to Louis van Gaal’s 5-3-2 formation which worked during the World Cup last year.
Blind told his press conference on Thursday, “I get the feeling that we need some more defensive stability,”
“We could use the 5-3-2 formation that we used at the World Cup, but playing with two holding midfielders is an option as well. The main thing is that we need a strong defensive core. I cannot say yet how we will play, though.
“We are not able to dominate our opponents at this stage. We will be using the same formation against Wales and Germany.”
Blind also admitted the failure to reach next years Euro’s has damaged the national teams image with the fans and they had to work hard to earn their trust back ahead of the 2018 World Cup qualifiers next September.
He said, “We will only be playing friendlies for now, but we cannot approach them like there is nothing at stake. I want to see the team fight and show passion,”
“It is all about qualifying for the 2018 World Cup now. I will give a number of new players a chance. I want to see a passionate team that wants to make amends for missing out on the Euros.
“We have lost a lot of goodwill. The people are very disappointed in us and we have to win them all over again.”
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I am Dutch fan and so sad for not qualify for Euro 2016 we knew since hidding there is big risk and continue with Blind and the catastrophe happen.so I want Holland to loose the 2 games maybe the Knvb change their mind and bring Koeman as new coach which bring the revolution for the Dutch team.