Netherlands national football team

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

The Netherlands is currently rated sixth in the world by FIFARanking & Statistics, FIFA, May 2006 having 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 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 Muller 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.

In 1978, the Netherlands again reached the final, only to be beaten by the hosts, Argentina. This side played without Cruijff, who refused to play in a country which had had a miltary coup two years before. 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 came second 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.

European Champions

The team's main success has been winning the 1988 European Championship. After losing the first group match against the USSR (1-0), Holland 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 final minutes of the game to beat the German side. Some Dutch fans then chanted "In 1940 they came; in 1988 we came", referring to the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands during World War II. 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."Cheeseheads vs Krauts": 30 Years of Enmity, Ajax-USA.com, June 14, 2004 Holland won the final with a convincing victory over the USSR, through a header by Ruud Gullit and a sublime volley by Van Basten.Marco Van Basten Euro '88 The Best Goal In The World at YouTube

The team subsequently reached the semi-finals in the tournament.

Recent

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 to eventual champions Brazil.

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, Holland were 4-0 down and looked like finishing third behind Scotland on goal difference and going out of the tournament, but Patrick Kluivert scored in the 78th minute to see the Dutch finish second on goals scored. They then drew with France 0-0 in their quarter final and went out 5-4 on penalties.

In 1998 FIFA World Cup, Netherlands, whose team included Marc Overmars, Phillip Cocu, Edgar Davids, Ronald de Boer and Patrick Kluivert, met Argentina in the quarterfinal, a rematch of the 1978 final, and won 2-1 after a Bergkamp goal in the 89th minute. 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 to Croatia 1-2.

Netherlands reached the semifinals in both the and , but failed to qualify for the 2002 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 pressDespite 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.[http://www.football.co.uk/holland/van_basten_on_right_track_230197.shtml

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

Origin of shirt colour

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 Dutch German Football Rivalry

The Dutch national football team has a long standing rivalry with the German National Football Team. Although it might date back to the Second World War, usually people date it to 1974 World Cup, where Holland lost the final to Germany, despite being regarded as the better team. Other notable clashes between the two nations were in the semifinal of Euro 88, where Marco van Basten slided the winning goal in the last minute past the German keeper, and the game in the Round of 16 in the 1990 FIFA World cup, with Germany beating Holland, after a famous spit-incident involving Frank Rijkaard and Rudi Völler

Competitive record

World Cup

Year	Finish	Wins	Losses	Draws	Goals Scored	Goals Against
1930	Did not enter
1934	Round 1	0	1	0	2	3
1938	Round 1	0	1	0	0	3
1950	Did not enter
1954	Did not enter
1958	Did not qualify
1962	Did not qualify
1966	Did not qualify
1970	Did not qualify
1974	Finals (Runner-up)	5	1	1	15	3
1978	Finals (Runner-up)	3	2	2	15	10
1982	Did not qualify
1986	Did not qualify
1990	Round 2	0	1	3	3	4
1994	Quarterfinals	3	2	0	8	6
1998	Semifinals (Fourth place)	3	2	2	13	7
2002	Did not qualify
2006	Round 2	2	1	1	3	2
Total		16	11	9	59	38

European Championship

1960 - Did not enter
1964 - Did not qualify
1968 - Did not qualify
1972 - Did not qualify
1976 - Semi-finals
1980 - Round 1
1984 - Did not qualify
1988 - Champions
1992 - Semi-finals
1996 - Quarter-finals
2000 - Semi-finals
2004 - Semi-finals

Summer Olympics

Current players

WC06 indicates player was part of 2006 World Cup squad.

Goalkeepers

Defenders

Midfielders

Strikers

Famous past players

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

Past managers

Georg Kessler 1966-1970
Frantisek Fadrhonc 1970-1974
Rinus Michels 1974
George Knobel 1974-1976
Jan Zwartkruis 1976-1977
Ernst Happel 1977-1978
Jan Zwartkruis 1978-1981
Kees Rijvers 1981-1984
Rinus Michels 1984-1985
Leo Beenhakker 1985-1986

Rinus Michels 1986-1988
Thijs Libregts 1988-1990
Leo Beenhakker 1990
Rinus Michels 1990-1992
Dick Advocaat 1992-1995
Guus Hiddink 1995-1998
Frank Rijkaard 1998-2000
Louis van Gaal 2000-2002
Dick Advocaat 2002-2004
Marco van Basten 2004-

2006 FIFA World Cup

Squad

Coach: Marco Van Basten

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Game information

Netherlands lineup during the game against Portugal

Player records

Most capped players

As of June 25, 2006, the ten players with the most caps for the Netherlands are:

#	Name	Career	Caps	Goals
1.	Edwin van der Sar	1995 - present	113	0
2.	Frank de Boer	1990 - 2004	112	13
3.	Phillip Cocu	1996 - 2006	101	10
4.	Marc Overmars	1993 - 2004	86	17
5.	Aron Winter	1987 - 2000	84	6
6.	Ruud Krol	1969 - 1983	83	4
7.	Dennis Bergkamp	1990 - 2000	79	37
8.	Patrick Kluivert	1994 - 2004	79	40
9.	Ronald Koeman	1983 - 1994	78	14
10.	Clarence Seedorf	1994 - 2004	77	11

Top goalscorers

As of June 21, 2006, the ten players with the most goals for the Netherlands are:

#	Player	Career	Goals (Caps)
1.	Patrick Kluivert	1994 - 2004	40 (79)
2.	Dennis Bergkamp	1990 - 2000	37 (79)
3.	Faas Wilkes	1946 - 1961	35 (38)
4.	Johan Cruijff	1966 - 1977	33 (48)
5.	Abe Lenstra	1940 - 1959	33 (47)
6.	Ruud van Nistelrooy	1998 - present	28 (54)
7.	Bep Bakhuys	1928 - 1937	28 (23)
8.	Kick Smit	1935 - 1946	26 (29)
9.	Marco van Basten	1983 - 1992	24 (58)
10.	Leen Vente	1933 - 1940	19 (21)

Footnotes

External links

European national football teams | Football in the Netherlands

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