Going Dutch - Holland World
Cup Preview...

Thirty two years after their 3 – 1 extra-time defeat by Argentina in the showpiece game, which in itself came four years on from their 2 – 1 final loss to West Germany, the Netherlands are determined to take the title this year at the FIFA World Cup South Africa. Since the retirement of their renowned coach Rinus Michels, a variety of players have attempted the tournament without ever getting as far as the final hurdle, although a particularly talented group of individuals did succeed in claiming the European title in 1988. Under Bert van Marwijk, who took over in the wake of the Netherlands’ disappointing UEFO EURO 2008 campaign, the squad are hoping to show their skills and wow the world at South Africa. So, will the Dutch be worthy of a world cup bet this year?

History is on their side: the last team to reach a FIFA World Cup finals without dropping a single point in qualifying was West Germany in 1982, and they went on to contest the final. Eight wins from eight games puts the Netherlands in that same position. Van Marwijk’s troops advanced to the top of Group 9, where they came up against Norway and Scotland as major rivals. However, the only two goals the Dutch conceded all campaign were against Iceland and FYR Macedonia, while they secured controlled 1 – 0 victories in both Glasgow and Oslo.

The Netherlands has seen legends in its time, but with Edwin van der Saar and Ruud van Nistelrooy having retired from their international careers, a new core of players has been firmed up by Van Marwijk to assault South Africa. The key players of the side are Arjen Robben, Joris Mathijsen, Andre Ouijer, Dirk Kuyt, Mark van Bommel, Klaas Jan Huntelaar and Giivanna van Bronckhorst. All of these players experienced considerable playing time under the team’s previous trainer. Additionally, Rafael van der Vaart, Robin van Persie, Nigel De Jong and Wesley Sneijder all remain closely involved in play.

In their eight appearances at a World Cup, the Netherlands have reached the final showpiece match twice, falling short of the title in 1974 and 1978. They also came fourth in France 1998. The Netherlands are in Group E of the group phase, with Denmark, Japan and Cameroon. Find out the world cup odds on Netherlands for 2010 with Betfair betting.

Please note, this is an externally written article and does not necessarily reflect the views of ArsenalShorts.

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