SOUTH AFRICA: FOOTBALL / SOCCER - WORLD CUP 2010 - The Netherlands become the first side to ensure their qualification to the next round and are looking ahead to finding out their opponents in the last 16

Record ID: 455619

  • Title: SOUTH AFRICA: FOOTBALL / SOCCER - WORLD CUP 2010 - The Netherlands become the first side to ensure their qualification to the next round and are looking ahead to finding out their opponents in the last 16
  • Date: 21st May 2010
  • Summary: JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA (JUNE 20, 2010) (REUTERS) DUTCH TEAM ON TRAINING PITCH DUTCH COACH BERT VAN MARWIJK TALKING TO PLAYERS PLAYERS JOGGING FANS WATCHING TRAINING SESSION DUTCH WINGER ARJEN ROBBEN TRAINING WITH BALL STRIKER DIRK KUYT (LEFT), STRIKER ROBIN VAN PERSIE (BLUE TRACKSUIT), MIDFIELDER WESLEY SNEIJDER (RIGHT) PLAYING VOLLEYBALL WITH NO HANDS STRIKER RYAN BABEL DURING TRAINING FORMER DUTCH MIDFIELDER RONALD DE BOER TALKING TO JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (English) FORMER NETHERLANDS MIDFIELDER RONALD DE BOER, SAYING: "It's a great thing, and even with not a great performance still we displayed in the two games, so that for me is positive, you can think about the negative thing that they didn't play well, but if you play not good and you win the matches, it's a quality and I know this team has a lot of qualities and if everybody comes to full fitness we can beat everybody on the day." ROBBEN TALKING TO TEAM MATE ON PITCH (SOUNDBITE) (English) FORMER NETHERLANDS MIDFIELDER RONALD DE BOER, SAYING: "Maybe we'll see him in this match, maybe for 20 minutes I guess, now is the time to try him out because there's no pressure anymore on the team, so you can decide exactly how you want to put him in or how to fill him in, it's of course a luxury problem but I hope of course they don't put him in too early 'cause if you lose him now and you take too early risk then I think you throw your chance to be world champion because you need a player like him, he makes defences weak." PLAYERS IN TRAINING FANS WATCHING MORE OF PLAYERS TRAINING SNEIJDER TALKING TO A FORMER DUTCH COACH PLAYERS IN TRAINING GOALKEEPER MAARTEN STEKELENBURG IN TRAINING MORE OF TRAINING COACH VAN MARWIJK IN NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (English) NETHERLANDS COACH BERT VAN MARWIJK, SAYING: "Robben yes, he's training now with the team, and he's doing well, he's not 100 percent, we will see in the next days how he is, so I cannot say anything about the next game." MEDIA IN NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (English) NETHERLANDS COACH BERT VAN MARWIJK, SAYING: "I told the players we had two missions, first to qualify and the second to try to win, and between you have to get the best of the group and that's not so easy, everybody expected us to win, we were the favourites in the group and we did it, we did it, we can play better, but we did it very stable I think, you can see that we can play football, you have to have patience in the games at the world championship, every team is good organised." JOURNALISTS LEAVING NEWS CONFERENCE
  • Embargoed: 5th June 2010 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: South Africa
  • Country: South Africa
  • Topics: Sports
  • Reuters ID: LVADDRZPGKDPO30A7JTAVRL114DO
  • Story Text: The Netherlands have become the first team at the 2010 World Cup to secure qualification from the group stage following Cameroon's 2-1 defeat to Denmark on Saturday (June 19) which followed their 1-0 win over Japan.
    The Dutch can now afford to rest key players in their final group match against the African side, who were bitterly disappointed to become the first side to be eliminated from the tournament.
    A goalkeeping error from Eiji Kawashima gifted Wesley Sneijder a goal early in the second half after the Japanese shot stopper misjudged a fierce shot from the Inter Milan maestro. Netherlands now have the maximum six points from their first two matches after beating the Danes in their opener.
    Winger Arjen Robben was training with his teammates on Sunday (June 20) and many are hoping to see him appear in their final group match as he recovers from a hamstring injury sustained in a friendly before the World Cup.
    Former Dutch midfielder Ronald De Boer said he believed the side can go all the way, especially as they have managed to get results with below par displays.
    "It's a great thing, and even with not a great performance still we displayed in the two games, so that for me is positive, you can think about the negative thing that they didn't play well, but if you play not good and you win the matches, it's a quality and I know this team has a lot of qualities and if everybody comes to full fitness we can beat everybody on the day," he said.
    Asked whether Robben can make an appearance against Cameroon, De Boer said the team needs to remain cautious.
    "Maybe we'll see him in this match, maybe for 20 minutes I guess, now is the time to try him out because there's no pressure anymore on the team... but I hope of course they don't put him in too early 'cause if you lose him now and you take too early risk then I think you throw your chance to be world champion because you need a player like him, he makes defences weak," he added.
    Dutch coach Bert van Marwijk said he couldn't reveal when Robben would make his comeback but said his condition was improving.
    "Robben yes, he's training now with the team, and he's doing well, he's not 100 percent, we will see in the next days how he is, so I cannot say anything about the next game," Van Marwijk said.
    "I told the players we had two missions, first to qualify and the second to try to win... you can see that we can play football, you have to have patience in the games at the world championship, every team is good organised," he added.
    Netherlands, who have never won the World Cup before, will likely play either Italy or Paraguay in the second round.
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