The Netherlands may be without their most experienced defender when they face Lionel Messi’s Argentina in the World Cup semi-final on Wednesday.
- By Spencer Steevensz
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Ron Vlaar, who plays for Aston Villa in England, is unlikely to be fit for the Netherlands semi-final match against Argentina after picking up a knee injury. This would be a big blow to the Netherlands defensive line, especially since defensive midfielder Nigel De Jong will miss the remainder of the tournament with a groin muscle injury. Vlaar and De Jong were the two most experienced players in the Netherlands defence, apart from striker turned wingback Dirk Kuyt.
Either Feyenoord’s Daryl Janmaat or Wolfsburg’s Paul Verhaegh could be handed a start if Vlaar is unavailable, while youngsters Joel Veltman or Terrence Kongolo could also feature.
While Dirk Kuyt has been playing in the defence, it’s unlikely he’ll be moved into a central defending area; although, with Louis Van Gaal at the helm, anything is possible.
The KNVB has not confirmed Vlaar’s status, so there’s still hope he’ll be available to shut down the Argentine offense.
I’d go with Kuyt at the back or Janmaat. Vlaar is strong but he has made two big errors, the bad header when Dos Santos scored and the give away to Australia in the group stage. Losing Vlaar is 50/50. He can be good but he can also make mistakes. Also I’d prefer Lens to start over Depay. Depay gave the ball away too much, Lens needs a start and he has some pace on the left. 5-3-2 is a risk, if they do that that means Messi will get lots of the ball and he is deadly in tight spaces and close free kicks. Keep the ball and go 4-4-3 I’d even do 4-3-4. Belgium had all day but just could not complete their final ball. They were young and looked gassed.
Really? Or is this just a trawl?
Vlaar has been immense. Apart from Robben and Kuyt he’s probably been their best player.
And Lens simply doesn’t have it. Quick? He came on as a sub and got outpaced by the RB who had been on the whole game. Not once but several times. He offered very little in possession and was in complete contrast to the shift Kuyt was putting in. Jean Paul would have been a much better option.
This and not giving Clasie some game time have been VG’s only real mistakes.