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| Courtesy: thearmchairpundits.com |
The Netherlands whimpered one final
time, threw up their hands and now stumble away from Northern Europe.
Three losses in a tough group has left the Dutch with fractured
egos, a burnished reputation and questions as to the continued
viability of employing manager Bert van Marwijk. Eviction from the
tournament was always a possibility, especially in a group in which
they were drawn against three other top-ten teams. However, the
manner of their dismissal should be cause for extreme conern.
A
constant tone of discontent undermined the tenuous harmonies of
South Africa, goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg played all three
matches despite poor play and two quality replacements, the Dutch
defence showed as much resilience as a wet rolling paper and key
players like Robin van Persie and Wesley Sneijder showed only a
fraction of their full qualities.
Should he have any hope of retaining
his position, van Marwijk will have to talk very hard – and
potentially very quickly – to justify his creation: a dysfunctional
iteration of the Dutch national team. Under his watch, Holland have
displayed sublime talent, occasional
violent streaks and a penchant for restlessness.
Any hopes of the Oranje making
the same impact as in the 2010 World Cup was improbable almost as
soon as the tournament began. Starting left-back Erik Pieters
withdrew because of injury, while central defender Joris Mathijsen
appeared unable to recover from an injury suffered playing for his
club side. Despite a strong qualification campaign, Dutch
achievements from two years ago appeared an effort of
overachievement.
