Desperate Dutch miss master
PERHAPS Louis van Gaal is not such a bad manager after all.
With much the same Holland squad as the one currently on the verge of failing to reach Euro 2016, he breezed through to the World Cup in Brazil on the back of nine wins in 10 qualifi ers .
The Dutch went on to reach the semi- fi nal against Argentina, only losing in a shoot- out before thrashing traumatised hosts Brazil in the thirdplace play- off.
That, it appears, was Van Gaal’s big mistake. Remarkably, seven of the past nine World Cup bronze medallists have failed to qualify for the following European Championship – the Germans post- 2006 and 2010 the only exceptions.
The biggest crime for the Dutch this year is that it has never been easier to reach the fi nals of a major tournament, with UEFA taking 15 months to whittle 53 of their members down to a largest- ever fi eld of 24 fi nalists in France.
Yet, following the 3- 0 defeat in Turkey on Sunday, the country that pioneered ‘ total football’ and reached back- to- back World Cup fi nals in the Seventies, as well as in South Africa just fi ve years ago, are even outsiders in the race to claim a play- off place.
Turkey are two points ahead with fi xtures against the two teams – Iceland and the Czech Republic – who can relax having already qualifi ed. The Dutch face an uncomfortable trip to Kazakhstan before an October 13 home showdown with the Czechs that will decide the fate of the second manager of their qualifying campaign.
Guus Hiddink lasted a year after succeeding Van Gaal, making way for Danny Blind, father of Van Gaal’s centreback at Manchester United, Daley.
Yet two games into his reign the heat is building as the descents towards retirement of Robin van Persie and Wesley Sneijder leave Holland too blunt to overcome naive defensive howlers and over- reliant on Arjen Robben. It is hard to imagine the litany of blunders in this campaign would have happened under a disciplinarian such as Van Gaal.
Daryl Janmaat’s last- minute header against his own post teed up the Czechs to snatch victory before a stupidly soft penalty in Reykjavik sent Iceland on their way. Separate red card and penalty incidents then marred the return last week.
Yet from the ruins of this campaign, one man is emerging as a saviour- in- waiting. Ronald Koeman is the man many in Holland now feel the country should have turned to when Van Gaal left. Southampton fans, you have been warned.