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[[Image:Coat of arms of the Netherlands.svg|thumb|110px||right|Coat of arms of the Netherlands]]
[[Image:Coat of arms of the Netherlands.svg|thumb|110px||right|Coat of arms of the Netherlands]]


The Netherlands national football team does not wear the colors of the Dutch flag of today, but instead plays in bright orange. Orange is the historic national color of the Netherlands, originating from the coat of arms of the Dutch founding father [[William the Silent|Willem van Oranje-Nassau]]. The top red band of the [[Dutch flag|current flag]] was originally orange. The current Dutch away shirt incorporates the flag colours as a diagonal stripe.
The Netherlands national football team does not wear the colors of the Dutch flag of today, but instead plays in bright orange. Orange is the historic national color of the Netherlands, originating from the coat of arms of the Dutch founding father [[William the Silent|William of Orange-Nassau]]. The top red band of the [[Dutch flag|current flag]] was originally orange. The current Dutch away shirt incorporates the flag colours as a diagonal stripe.


== Rivalry with Germany ==
== Rivalry with Germany ==

Revision as of 21:10, 8 December 2006

Netherlands
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)Oranje, Clockwork Orange,
Orange Crush, The Orangemen
AssociationKoninklijke Nederlandse
Voetbalbond
Head coachNetherlands Marco van Basten, (2004-)
CaptainEdwin van der Sar
Most capsEdwin van der Sar (118)
Top scorerPatrick Kluivert (40)
FIFA codeNED
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current7
Highest2 (November 1993)
Lowest25 (May 1998)
First international
Belgium Belgium 1 - 4 Netherlands Netherlands
(Antwerp, Belgium; 30 April, 1905)
Biggest win
Netherlands Netherlands 9 - 0 Norway Norway
(Rotterdam, Netherlands; 1 November, 1972)
Biggest defeat
Netherlands Netherlands 2 - 12 England Amateur England
(The Hague, Netherlands; 1 April, 1907)
World Cup
Appearances8 (first in 1934)
Best resultRunners-up, 1974 and 1978
European Championship
Appearances7 (first in 1976)
Best resultWinners, 1988
Olympic medal record
Men's Football
Bronze medal – third place 1908 London Team
Bronze medal – third place 1912 Stockholm Team
Bronze medal – third place 1920 Antwerp Team

The Netherlands national football team is the national football team of the Netherlands and is controlled by the Royal Netherlands Football Association.

It has won the 1988 European Football Championship (Euro 88), and having reached two consecutive World Cup finals, but losing both (1974 and 1978). At the peak of its success in the 1970s, the team was famous for its mastery of Total Football and nicknamed "Clockwork Orange" for its precision passing.

History

The Netherlands made their first appearance at the World Cup final tournament in 1934, and after coming back in 1938, the Dutch national team entered the wilderness of world football.

Total Football

They came out of this wilderness in the 1970s with the invention of Total Football (Dutch: Totaalvoetbal), pioneered by Ajax Amsterdam and led by playmaker Johan Cruijff and national team coach Rinus Michels. The Dutch made huge strides, qualifying for two World Cup finals in the decade.

In 1974, the Netherlands beat both Brazil and Argentina in the second group stage, reaching the final for the first time in their history. However, the team lost to West Germany in the final in Munich, despite having gone 1-0 up through Johan Neeskens' early penalty kick before any German had even touched the ball. Supported by the crowd, goals from Paul Breitner and Gerd Müller led to a victory for the Germans. In spite of losing the final, the "Clockwork Orange" and Johan Cruijff had already written a new page in football's history.

By comparison, Euro 1976 was a dissapointment. The Netherlands lost in the semi-finals to Czechoslovakia, as much victims of infighting within the squad and because of coach Georg Knobel, as well as the skill of the eventual winners.

In 1978, the Netherlands again reached the final, only to be beaten by the hosts, Argentina. This side played without Cruijff, who refused to participate in the World Cup because Argentina had suffered a military coup only two years earlier and he objected to playing in a country where torture and murder were continuing to be perpetrated by the junta.[1] It still contained players such as Neeskens, Johnny Rep, Arie Haan, Ruud Krol and Rob Rensenbrink from the 1974 selection. This time the Netherlands were less impressive in the group stages, as they qualified only as runners-up, after a draw with Peru and a loss to Scotland. In the second group phase, however, the Netherlands topped a group including Italy and West Germany, setting up a final with Argentina. However, the Dutch finished as runners up for the second World Cup in a row as they ultimately lost 3-1 after two extra-time goals from Argentina. Agonisingly for the Dutch, Rensenbrink hit the Argentinian post in the last minute of normal time, with the score 1-1.

Euro 1980 was the last tournament that the generation of Total Football managed to qualify for but they did not advance past the group stage, despite the tournament format being expanded that year. Veterans such as Krol and Rensenbrink retired soon afterwards and the Netherlands missed the 1982 FIFA World Cup, Euro 1984, and the 1986 FIFA World Cup in succession.

European Champions

Rinus Michels returned to coach the team for Euro 88. After losing the first group match against the USSR (1-0), the Netherlands went on to qualify for the semi-final by defeating England 3-1 (with a hat-trick by the tournament's top scorer Marco van Basten), and Republic of Ireland (1-0). For many Dutch football supporters, the most important match in the tournament was the semi-final against West Germany, the host country, considered a revenge for the lost 1974 World Cup final (also in West Germany). Marco van Basten, who would later become national team coach, scored in the 89th minute of the game to sink the German side. The game is also remembered for its post-match shenanigans, including Ronald Koeman, who, in front of the German supporters, provocatively pretended to wipe his backside with the shirt of Olaf Thon as if it was toilet paper, an action Koeman later regretted.[1] The Netherlands won the final with a convincing victory over the USSR, a rematch on the round robin game, through a header by Ruud Gullit and a sublime volley by Van Basten. This was the national team's first major tournament win and it restored them to the forefront of international football after almost a decade in wilderness.

Despite high expectations as the team entered the 1990 World Cup, that tournament was not a success. Van Basten failed to score, as he was frequently marked by opposing defenders, while Gullit was ineffective having not fully recovered from injury. The Dutch managed to advance despite drawing all three group games, meeting their arch-rivals West Germany in the round of 16. The match is most remembered for the spitting-incident involving Frank Rijkaard and Rudi Völler as the Netherlands lost 2-1.

The team subsequently reached the semi-finals in the (edit conflict × 92), which was noted for the emergence of Dennis Bergkamp, but they were eliminated by eventual champions Denmark, with Van Basten's kick in the penalty shootout being saved by Peter Schmeichel. This was also Van Basten's last major tournament, as he retired shortly after due to injury.

In the 1994 FIFA World Cup, Dennis Bergkamp led the team with 3 goals and the Netherlands advanced to the quarterfinal, where they lost 3-2 to eventual champions Brazil.

1998 World Cup and Euro 2000

Dutch supporters

At Euro 96, after drawing 0-0 with Scotland and beating Switzerland 2-0, they faced the hosts England in the pool A decider, with both teams on 4 points. After 62 minutes, with Scotland beating Switzerland 1-0, The Netherlands were 4-0 down and looked like finishing third behind Scotland on goal difference and going out of the tournament, but Patrick Kluivert converted a Dennis Bergkamp assist and scored in the 78th minute to see the Dutch finish second on goals scored. They then played France in the quarter-finals, drawing 0-0 and being eliminated 5-4 on penalties.

In 1998 FIFA World Cup, Netherlands, whose team included Marc Overmars, Phillip Cocu, Edgar Davids, Frank de Boer, Ronald de Boer and Patrick Kluivert, met Argentina in the quarterfinal, a rematch of the 1978 final. Near the end of regular time, after an unsuccessful dive to draw a penalty, Argentinian Ariel Ortega headbutted Edwin van der Sar[2]. Ortega was send off and the Netherlands won 2-1 after a Bergkamp goal in the 89th minute. Bergkamp's goal was famous because of its quality--he touched down a 60 yard pass from Frank de Boer before reverse-flicked it inside Roberto Ayala and finally volleying it pass the stunned Argentine goalkeeper. In the semifinal, the Netherlands took Brazil to a penalty shootout after a late Kluivert goal tied the match 1-1, but Brazil won the shootout 4-2 and advanced to the final. Netherlands lost the 3rd place match 2-1 to upstart Croatia.

Netherlands co-hosted Template:Ec2 with Belgium and were one of the favorites coming into the tournament. Getting all three wins in the group stage, including a win over reigning World Cup champions France, they then crushed Yugoslavia 6-1 in the quarter-finals, with Kluivert getting a hat-trick. In the semi-finals, their opponents Italy went down to ten men in the first half and the Netherlands were awarded two Penalty kicks but failed to convert either chance. Italian goalkeeper Francesco Toldo made two saves in the shootout (in addition to his penalty save in regulation time) to eliminate the Netherlands. Coach Frank Rijkaard was widely criticized by the press as the Dutch had squandered several chances to kill the game and he resigned, with Louis van Gaal taking over. Dennis Bergkamp retired from the national team after Euro 2000, having not scored during the tournament.

Recent

Netherlands failed to qualify for the 2002 FIFA World Cup, with crucial losses to Portugal and the Republic of Ireland, the latter which eliminated them from the Finals tournament. Van Gaal resigned at the conclusion of the Netherlands' unsuccessful campaign.

Netherlands reached the semifinals of Template:Ec2 but lost to Portugal. Coach Dick Advocaat was criticized for his tactics and player changes and stepped down after the tournament. Also, many of the team's World Cup veterans like Frank de Boer, Ronald de Boer, Edgar Davids, Clarence Seedorf, Marc Overmars, Jaap Stam, and Patrick Kluivert had either retired or were not selected for the upcoming World Cup by new coach Marco van Basten.

Netherlands at the 2006 FIFA World Cup

The Netherlands qualified for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany and finished second in Group C after beating Serbia & Montenegro (1-0) and the Ivory Coast (2-1) and drawing Argentina (0-0). Both Argentina and the Netherlands finished the group stage with 7 points, but the Argentinians had a superior goal difference and finished first as a result. The Dutch were eliminated in the second round after losing 0-1 to Portugal, in a match that produced a World Cup record of four red cards (two for either side) and was nicknamed "the Battle of Nuremberg" by the press[3]. Despite criticism surrounding his selection policy and the lack of attacking football from his team, Marco van Basten was offered a two-year extension to his contract by the Dutch FA, which would allow him to serve as national coach during Euro2008 and the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The move was widely regarded as a vote of confidence in Van Basten and his assistants by the KNVB officials.[4]

The Netherlands begin their Euro 2008 campaign in their first qualifying match against Luxembourg on 2 September 2006.

Origin of shirt colour

Coat of arms of the Netherlands

The Netherlands national football team does not wear the colors of the Dutch flag of today, but instead plays in bright orange. Orange is the historic national color of the Netherlands, originating from the coat of arms of the Dutch founding father William of Orange-Nassau. The top red band of the current flag was originally orange. The current Dutch away shirt incorporates the flag colours as a diagonal stripe.

Rivalry with Germany

Main article: Germany and Netherlands football rivalry

The Dutch national football team has a long standing rivalry with Germany. Although it might date back to the Second World War, usually people date it to the

Wikipedia has media related to 1974.

, where the Netherlands lost the final to Germany, despite being regarded as the better team. Other notable clashes between the two nations were in the semifinal of (edit conflict × 88), where Marco van Basten slid the winning goal in the last minute past the German keeper, and the game in the Round of 16 in the

Wikipedia has media related to 1990.

, with Germany beating the Dutch after a famous spitting incident involving Frank Rijkaard and Rudi Völler.

Competitive record

Current squad

The following players named for friendly match against England on 15 November [5].

Caps and goals as of 15 November2006, included against England.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1GK Henk Timmer 13 December 1971 3 0 Netherlands Feyenoord
1GK Maarten Stekelenburg 22 September 1982 3 0 Netherlands Ajax
2DF André Ooijer 11 July 1974 29 2 England Blackburn Rovers
2DF John Heitinga 15 November 1983 24 2 Netherlands Ajax
2DF Khalid Boulahrouz 28 December 1981 19 0 England Chelsea
2DF Joris Mathijsen 5 April 1980 17 1 Germany Hamburg
2DF Tim de Cler 8 November 1978 7 0 Netherlands AZ
2DF Kew Jaliens 15 September 1978 4 0 Netherlands AZ
2DF Urby Emanuelson 16 June 1986 4 0 Netherlands Ajax
3MF Clarence Seedorf 1 April 1976 78 11 Italy AC Milan
3MF Rafael van der Vaart 11 February 1983 40 7 Germany Hamburg
3MF Denny Landzaat 6 April 1976 32 1 England Wigan Athletic
3MF Hedwiges Maduro 13 February 1985 12 0 Netherlands Ajax
3MF Stijn Schaars 11 January 1984 6 0 Netherlands AZ
3MF David Mendes da Silva 4 August 1982 0 0 Netherlands AZ
3MF Evander Sno 9 April 1987 0 0 Scotland Celtic
4FW Arjen Robben 23 January 1984 27 8 England Chelsea
4FW Dirk Kuyt 22 July 1980 27 5 England Liverpool
4FW Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink 11 July 1978 10 0 Scotland Celtic
4FW Klaas Jan Huntelaar 12 August 1983 4 2 Netherlands Ajax

Recent call-up

The following players have all recently been called up to the Netherlands squad. Bracket shows last call-up time.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1GK Edwin van der Sar (Euro 2008 qual. v. Albania, 11 October) 29 October 1970 118 0 England Manchester United
2DF Giovanni van Bronckhorst (Friendly v. England, 15 November) 5 February 1975 63 3 Spain Barcelona
2DF Jan Kromkamp (2006 FIFA World Cup) 17 August 1980 11 0 Netherlands PSV Eindhoven
3MF Wesley Sneijder (Friendly v. England, 15 November) 9 June 1984 30 5 Netherlands Ajax
3MF Nigel de Jong (Euro 2008 qual. v. Albania, 11 October) 20 November 1984 14 0 Germany Hamburg
3MF Demy de Zeeuw (Euro 2008 qual. v. Albania, 11 October) 26 May 1983 0 0 Netherlands AZ
3MF Theo Janssen (Euro 2008 qual. v. Belarus, 6 September) 27 July 1982 2 0 Netherlands Vitesse
3MF Philip Cocu (retired from international football) (2006 FIFA World Cup) 29 October 1970 101 10 Netherlands PSV Eindhoven
3MF Mark van Bommel (retired from international football) (2006 FIFA World Cup) 22 April 1977 40 7 Germany Bayern Munich
4FW Robin van Persie (Friendly v. England, 15 November) 6 August 1983 19 7 England Arsenal
4FW Ryan Babel (Euro 2008 qual. v. Albania, 11 October) 19 December 1986 11 3 Netherlands Ajax
4FW Martijn Meerdink (Euro 2008 qual. v. Belarus, 6 September) 27 July 1982 1 0 Netherlands AZ
4FW Ruud van Nistelrooy (2006 FIFA World Cup) 1 July 1976 54 28 Spain Real Madrid

2006 World Cup squad

See 2006 FIFA World Cup squads - Netherlands

Past managers

Players

Famous past players

Listed according to when they debuted for Netherlands (year in parentheses):


Footnotes

  1. ^ "Cheeseheads vs Krauts": 30 Years of Enmity, Ajax-USA.com, June 14, 2004

See also

Template:Fb start

Template:Fb end

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