No. 515: Robben Returns!
After a fifteen-minute break, the players returned to the field. Pen % fun % Pavilion www.biquge.info
At the Royal Bamfordken Stadium in Rustenburg, Japan continued their conservative tactics late in the first half, putting a lot of troops on the defence and Denmark launched a fierce attack.
At the Green Point Stadium in Cape Town, Van Marwijk made no substitutions at the start of the second half, with both sides attacking and defending.
In the seventeenth minute of the second half, Cameroon almost equalized, Aboubakar cut inside on the right and suddenly plugged with his left foot, and Makon faced Dutch goalkeeper Stekelenberg directly on the right side of the penalty area!
One!
Macon pushes with one kick!
Stekelenberg leaped to his feet and slammed the ball out!
Cameroon made a comeback two minutes later when Blarouze, who had started in place of Donny van der Wiel, fouled MarcΓ³n from outside the box and were awarded a free-kick.
Cameroon midfielder Geremy takes a free-kick from 25 yards in front of goal, and the ball flies to the wall and hits Van der Vaart's raised left elbow!
"Tick! β¦β¦β
Referee Poso blows for a penalty!
Cameroon captain Samuel Eto'o stood behind the penalty spot.
After the referee's whistle, the African cheetah took two steps forward and shot with his right foot, and the football flew into the net from the right side of the goal!
One-to-one!
Cameroon equalised!
Van Marwijk made an immediate substitution, replacing Van der Vaart, who gave the Cameroonian penalty, to Robben, who had returned from injury.
The two didn't even give a polite high-five on the sidelines.
How could Robben high-five Van der Vaart, who put himself on the injury list.
Van der Vaart, on the other hand, thought that Van Marwijk had equalised the score because of his handball, and substituted himself in a fit of rage.
He didn't pay any attention to Van Marwijk, who was standing in the command area, and walked towards the bench.
Van Marwijk frowned slightly, and he was determined to kick Van der Vaart out of the national team after this World Cup.
The reason why this is not being done now is because the team needs to be united, at least on the surface.
The lessons of the French team have been laid in front of all the Dutch, and if Van Marwijk kills the killer at this time, it will definitely put the Netherlands in the spotlight of the whole world.
And this kind of focus will only make the team carry a heavier burden.
At the Royal Bamferken Stadium in Rustenburg, the Japanese team paid the price for their conservatism.
In the 34th minute of the second half, Denmark launched an attack from the left side, Eriksen crossed horizontally, and the football flew to the penalty area!
Danish defender Soren Larsson, who stepped into the attack, flew to the kill and directly raised his foot to volley!
"Pong! β¦β¦β
With a loud bang, the ball hits the crossbar and pops off the bottom line!
In the process, Japanese goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima did not react at all!
The Japanese escaped.
Two minutes later, the Danes made a comeback, Danish midfielder Romerdal fired a through ball from outside the box, and Danish centre-back Ager, who had smashed into the Japanese box, took control of the ball!
In a hurry, Japanese midfielder Makoto Hasebe pushed him down!
"Tick! β¦β¦β
The referee blew a whistle and pointed firmly to the penalty spot with his right hand!
Penalty kick!
Denmark's Tomasson was standing behind the football and was going to take the penalty.
"Tick! β¦β¦β
The referee blew the whistle, and Tomasson slowly ran towards the football!
"Smack! β¦β¦β
The football flew to the right side of the goal, and Eiji Kawashima predicted the right direction and blocked the football!
Just as the Japanese fans were about to cheer, Tomasson followed up with a follow-up shot, and the football went into the net!
One to two, Denmark narrows the difference!
The goal brought the Japanese to their senses, and if they continue to be conservative, Denmark could turn the tables around.
In the following game, they launched a fierce attack.
Just then, the news of the goal came from the Green Point Stadium in Cape Town!
In the 37th minute of the second half, Sneijder launched a counterattack at the back and made a precise direct pass with the outside of his right foot.
Robben took the ball on the right and turned inside to dodge Rigobert Song and fired a left-footed volley from 23 meters in front of the goal!
The soccer ball goes straight to the bottom left corner of the goal!
"Pong!"
With a loud bang, the football hit the post and bounced back into the penalty area, and the alert Huntelaar flew forward to shoot with a follow-up shot!
Football will enter the net and fly into the empty goal!
Two to one!
The Netherlands are leading again!
Huntelaar scored twice!
Just a minute after Huntelaar's goal, Japan unleashed the fatal blow on Denmark.
Keisuke Honda receives a pass from a teammate on the wing, deducts Romerdal and smashes into the box!
In the face of the defense of the opponent's central defender, Keisuke Honda suddenly crossed, and the football flew towards the unguarded Shinji Okazaki!
Shinji Okazaki shoots into the empty goal easily!
Three to one!
The Japanese seal the win!
In the following time, the Japanese team wasted time by all means.
They eventually maintained their two-goal advantage until the end of the game, and with two wins and one loss, they ranked second in the group and advanced to the round of 16 and became the second team in Asia to qualify.
The Netherlands also maintained their one-goal lead until the end of the game, winning three in a row and advancing to the round of 16 as group winners.
Speaking to reporters, Van Marwijk said: "Our goal for this game is to win and give other players a chance to play.
Anyway, the result is good, as for the process...... That doesn't matter anymore......"
What Van Marwijk did not expect was that although the Netherlands had won, they were criticized by the domestic media.
The Telegraph criticized: "After two wins in a row, the Dutch fans were delighted to see that the old Dutch team was back, but the match against Cameroon showed us the ugly Dutch team under Van Marwijk!"
The attack was lackluster, and if it wasn't for Robben coming on to savior, the Netherlands would have had a good chance of getting an ugly draw!
We know Van Marwijk hid Van Persie and Chan for a more brutal knockout round, but a win like Cameroon's one puts us to shame.
Could it be that with five starters, the Netherlands will not be able to play a fluid combination?
Can't get a dominant victory?
If that's the case, Van Marwijk, you left South Africa with the Dutch team earlier! β
The Dutch team was praised for scoring twice in Huntelaar and Arjen Robben.
The Telegraph said: "Arjen Robben came off the bench from injury to score the game-winning goal and we expect to see both wings fly again in the quarter-finals!
Undoubtedly, in Chen's absence, Huntelaar became the savior of the Netherlands, scoring twice to help the Netherlands win their final group game.
Huntelaar has said a few days ago that his desire is to prove himself in the World Cup, hoping that the Dutch team can win one by one. As for his future as a club after the World Cup, Huntelaar has also made it clear: he is only willing to stay at AC Milan.
Previously, Italian media revealed that AC Milan had the opportunity to send Huntelaar for 18 million euros, but was rejected by Huntelaar.
Fenerbahce offered 18 million, but Huntelaar refused, saying: 'If you want me to move, you have to go to the championship team, but you can't play as a substitute like last season.' β
Huntelaar's agent, Osterwell, said: 'AC Milan have openly said they are looking for another striker?' All I know is that Huntelaar has four years left on his contract with AC Milan and nothing else to say. Huntelaar will be hoping to win with AC Milan in the future. β
For Van Marwijk, Huntelaar's performance was another conundrum. Will he continue to use Van Persie or Huntelaar in the quarter-finals? β