The international break is over and as expected Netherlands will not be going to the World Cup next summer. Michael Bell picks seven talking points surrounding the national team after the games against Belarus and Sweden.
- Follow Michael on Twitter
Robben is going to be impossible to replace
The first half against Sweden was the Arjen Robben show on Tuesday and he proved just how impossible the task will be for Netherlands to find his replacement.
For me, Robben stands above Wesley Sneijder, Robin van Persie and Rafael van der Vaart, as the top Dutch star of his generation, and his influence to the national team since his debut in 2003 can’t be understated. He was the reason Netherlands reached the World Cup semi-finals two years ago, and he has been the national team’s one-man show since.
Robben is still genuinely world class and it’s going to be more than a few years until we see someone with his ability pull on the Oranje jersey.
Advocaat is not the man to take Netherlands forward
After the win over Sweden, Dick Advocaat hinted that he was open to continuing as Netherlands boss, but for me the KNVB have to say goodbye to the little general.
To be fair on Advocaat, he stepped into a difficult position when he replaced Danny Blind, and he hasn’t done too much wrong with only of the defeats coming under his leadership. However, Advocaat proved once again against Sweden that he is not an adventurous coach or one that will deviate from his prefered way of playing, and that is what Netherlands need at the moment.
The KNVB have to find a coach willing to ditch the 4-3-3 formation and bring some fresh ideas and discipline back, like Louis van Gaal did. Utrecht’s Erik ten Hag would be my dream candidate, but he is unlikely at the moment, and that leaves me wondering if Oranje should look abroad.
Frank de Boer is available at the moment but also not the answer, while Ronald Koeman could be an option if his Everton side continues to disappoint and he gets the sack.
Blind should be deployed in midfield
Netherlands have been looking for a controlling midfielder to sit in front of the defence all campaign, with Kevin Strootman failing miserably. However, the win over Sweden provided the answer with Daley Blind putting in a great performance as a number six and going forward he needs to be deployed in the middle instead of at left back.
One of the main criticism’s of this Dutch team is they always look for the sideways pass, but Blind was positive on Tuesday, always looking to move the ball forward, and he has a range of passing that no other Dutch midfielder, expect Sneijder possesses at the moment.
Moving Blind out of the left-back slot wouldn’t impact the defence, with Patrick van Aanholt, Jetro Willems, Ridgeciano Haps and Terence Kongolo all more than capable of replacing him in the position.
Who will now lead Oranje going forward?
Robben has hung up his Oranje boots and Wesley Sneijder won’t be too far behind, so who is going to take over the role as leader of the national team? Kevin Strootman, Georginio Wijnaldum and Davy Klaassen have all captained their club at one point, but their performances in Oranje have left a lot to be desired. Virgil van Dijk and Stefan de Vrij are the other experienced heads in the team, but for me, the best option may be Blind.
I think the Manchester United star is going to be a big player for the national team over the next few years and can definitely handle the responsibility of taking the armband from Robben.
The striker position is a huge issue
I like Vincent Janssen and think he works very hard for the national team, but watching him against Sweden was difficult. It is clear that his confidence at the moment is completely shot and he shouldn’t have been the man starting up front. Bas Dost didn’t do much better in the second half, though, and the forward position is going to be a big issue heading into the qualifiers for Euro 2020.
If Dost and Janssen aren’t the answer then what is left? The ageing Robin van Persie or Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, Ricky van Wolfswinkel, Jurgen Locadia or a totally out of form Luuk de Jong? It is a depressing situation for a nation which has always been so blessed with attacking talent over the years. How I long for the days when Roy Makaay, Pierre van Hooijdonk, and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink couldn’t get a game because of Patrick Kluivert, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Dennis Bergkamp.
Luckily there are youth talents coming through such as Daishawn Redan, Kaj Sierhuis, Joel Piroe and Sam Lammers, but none of them are ready to lead the line yet. In the meantime, one answer could be to play without a recognised centre forward and go for pace. Quincy Promes scores goals for fun in Russia and sometimes gets lost out on the wing for Oranje. Moving him inside might provide some needed spark in the Dutch attack. He would probably have a field day with Daley Blind’s balls over the top.
Time to inject youth and personality
The most recent golden generation is gone, and its time to start building a team that will be ready to make a mark at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
If players such as Georginio Wijnaldum, Davy Klaassen and Kevin Strootman aren’t performing now then are they really going to be much better over the next few years? Probably not so it’s time to start injecting some youth, pace and much-needed personality to the team.
The likes of Justin Kluivert, Frenkie de Jong, Steven Bergwijn, Timothy Fosu-Mensah and Donny van de Beek are the nations biggest hope going forward, so why not start moulding the team around them. Sneijder, Robben, Van Persie and Van der Vaart were all regulars when they were in their late teens, early twenties, and its time to give the new golden generation their chance.
We have already missed two tournaments in a row, so what is there to lose by putting our faith in youth?
Netherlands were unlucky
When I look back on the campaign it’s easy to criticise Netherlands for some of their performances, and rightly so, but at times luck was just not on Oranje’s side.
The qualifying campaign should have got off to what would have been a crucial win in Sweden, but Bas Dost’s late goal was wrongly ruled out. That goal stands and Netherlands are in the playoffs.
Also worth noting that nine times out of ten, Maarten Stekelenburg would have saved Paul Pogba’s winning goal in the 1-0 loss to France, while Luxembourg’s 8-0 loss to Sweden was a total freak result. The less said about Hugo Lloris late mistake which gifted Sweden a last-minute winner against France, the better as well.
There are no excuses to be made, but sometimes, in groups with such fine margins, luck plays a major role and sadly Netherlands didn’t get much.
Also, the fact that goal difference still plays such a key role in this day and age is also a joke, and FIFA need to look at making head to head the tie-breaker between teams with the same points.
Follow
Follow @Footballoranje_ on Twitter
Muy de acuerdo con todo lo anteriormente expuesto, realmente coincido al 100%, ahora se necesita actuar rapidamente con estos fracasos en estos dos torneos, a lo mejor las cosas se tienen que poner mas malas para que se pongan buenas, todo empezo con la salida de van Gaal, el reemplazo debio ser Koeman y fue Hidding pero al ver el peligro de no clasificar abandono el barco y se lo dejaron a Blind y fracaso, sin embargo este no pudo llegar ni siquiera al tercer lugar y confiaron en el para seguir rumbo al mundial y fue otro error enorme, luego ningun entrenador dio el paso al frente de los que se lo propusieron y Avocaat hizo lo que pudo cuando todo estaba perdido, van Gaal no quizo por lo tanto no deberian llamarlo mas nunca para nada porque el podia haber logrado la clasificacion, fue un miserable pendejo que no siente la camiseta naranja, quien sera el hombre adecuado para mi seria Koeman pero hay que hacerle saber la importancia del cargo y su deber como holandes no hay que esperar a que lo despidan de su trabajo porque eso no va a suceder, hay que hacer como hizo Argentina con Sampaoli que dejo Sevilla por su seleccion
Oh man, this is an extensive issue, I’m from Mexico, but since many years I have been Dutch Football and Oranje follower and fan, it is sad to see a Netherlands team in this crisis and the lack of talent in this moment.
I think KNVB should look for the future, but a very far future, support the National Team in the youngsters in the U21 and U19 teams, forget about the actual team roster, maybe one or two experienced players like you said Blind, Strootman, Cilessen or Wijnaldum, but I think that this team should bet for the young star like De Light, Kluivert, Ramselaar, Riedewald, etc.
And you need to start to export young players to the most important leagues, that was one of the keys.
The National team boss, oh man, a big issue, I don’t know really who can be but one thing is true you need to look for a young successful coach that knows how to use the 4-3-3 formation. Names? I don’t know but I’m sure that you have one in your national teams: U19, U21, U17 or in the Eredivisie. In my head, I have only two coaches that now are in the hot spot for me, Philip Cocu and Gio van Bronckhorst, they are doing things well and I think you can look that way.
Cheers man from Mexico and is sad that Netherlands miss World Cup, but I am sure that Qatar is going to be the Oranje Return.
Really great points from everyone – the only thing I would disagree with you on is Vincent Janssen. He has some good qualities but I fear that his lack of pace is a real impediment to his success both at club or international level. Sadly he is a target man in an age of football that doesn’t require target men.
I too would have like to have seen guys like Kluivert and Ramsalaar introduced earlier in the campaign…Ramsalaar is in his 20’s now right? How is that too young for a Dutchman?
I was at the game last night and liked what looked like a 3-4-3. Nathan Ake played really well, considering he was being played well out of position (Dick, really??). Blind looks good in midfield but I would be tempted to play Van Dijk in there as well. There are after all some good centre backs around and big Virgil looks like he could really command in there where Strootman failed. And were is Karsdorp??
James Rae, Karsdorp is injured and has yet to play for Roma. Also, Ramselaar is 21, has made his national team debut already. This week however, he was with Jong Oranje (as is Kluivert). v.Dijk is also a straight-up CB. He’s not moving to the MF, especially when he is going to end up a central figure at his position for a club like Man City or Chelsea sooner than later.
As for the talking points in the article, I don’t disagree with anything, and I will say thank you for mentioning FIFA’s archaic goal differential obsession. Nobody else is talking about it (not in any media I’ve watched anyway). We can lament bad luck on the pitch (Dost in Sweden, Stekelenburg not saving that long strike, etc), but that’s all part of sport. What is NOT part of sport, is using a math equation as your first tiebreaker rather than who actually did better between the tied teams. Oranje should be in the playoffs and I will say that with conviction. Chile also got screwed in the same way. Peru got the playoff with New Zealand even though Chile beat them twice. It’s an embarrassing system.
The problem has been coaching and player selection and tactics. The team too many times made lazy errors and showed no determination. Pogba’s 35 yarder against Stekelenburg, losing to Bulgaria 2-0 and France 4-0 very poor efforts. This last game they played well but Sweden did not have to win. I remember a 4-1 win over France in 2008. Other countries have rebuilt and either improved or maintained their success. Holland has regressed in every facet of the game in a very short period of time. Coaching, training, player selections and tactics all suspect. It happens and it happened to them. I have to admit also they have had terrible luck over the past 3 years. I will support them always. Thank You Arjen Robben my 2nd favourite player of all time.
A well said 7 points there. I believe Oranje will regain back its dignity and position starting from the UEFA nations league soon.
I couldn’t agree more with you about putting Blind in midfield. Every time he picked the ball up he was looking to play the ball forward quickly, and he’s got an superb passing range. Also reads the game exceptionally well and stepped in with a few key interceptions. He was shunted out of the DM role at Man United, but then again the expectations and competition there are extremely high.
In addition to the potential replacement LBs you mentioned above, there’s also Erik Pieters, who has been regularly playing in a very tough league for years now and has been consistently and wrongly been overlooked for the national team.
Daley Blind new leader is a joke, isn’t it? He has no grit, no personality, no leadership. We need warriors and not sissies like him.