holland vs italy...
Holland vs Italy: 3-0
(van Nistelrooy 26', Sneijder 31', van Bronckhorst 79')
Holland: van der Sar - Boulahrouz (Heitinga, 76'), Ooijer, Mathijsen, van Bronckhorst -
de Jong, Engelaar - Kuyt (Affelay, 81'), van der Vaart, Sneijder - van Nistelrooy (van Persie, 70')
Italy: Buffon - Panucci, Barzagli, Materazzi (Grosso, 55'),
Zambrotta -
Gattuso, Pirlo, Ambrosini - di Natale (del Piero, 64'), Camoranesi (Cassano, 75') -
Toni
Holy shit, Holland! O_O
Dude, that was the best game ever. Call me bitter, but I think this demolition served these conceited Italians well. They acted far too cocky and self-satisfied, but when it came down to it, they couldn't back it up. And the Netherlands? Baffled me in every way possible. Beautiful football combined with the fighting spirit that's necessary to beat a defensively oriented team like Italy. It was damn difficult to only pick a couple of Dutch players to bold in my line-up above because they all stood out in their own way. Sneijder dribbled the Italian defense silly, Kuyt put Zambrotta to shame every time he challenged him (and prepared two goals!), van Bronckhorst did an excellent job on the left side and even scored a beautiful goal. And Boulahrouz, sorted out at Sevilla and only called up for the national team because of Ryan Babel's injury, did the best defense job of his life and didn't even commit one single foul (at least I didn't see one). Also Ooijer, Engelaar, van Nistelrooy... Wow. And van der Sar, who had one world-class parade that eventually led to the 3-0 and almost prepared another goal.
Ironically, it didn't even look like that at the beginning. In the 18th minute, I was already cursing that damn Italian luck when Buffon attacked van Nistelrooy and made him lose his balance (kudos to Ruud for not letting himself fall down!). Buffon destroyed a clear chance, and there should have been a penalty. Therefore, I was damn glad when I realised that this time they didn't stay lucky - on the contrary, the first goal was damn unlucky because Panucci was lying behind the goal and counted as a second player between van Nistelrooy and the back of the net. Is it very evil of me to have laughed out loud for several minutes after this? ;)
And wow, those goals!! Ruud's 1-0 was brilliant already, and van Bronckhorst's 3-0 was awesome, but Sneijder's 2-0 took the cake. A quick counter attack after a corner for Italy, van Bronckhorst kicks the ball off the line and starts running forward, then crosses all the way to the other side where Kuyt is running with him, and Dirk (who, in this game, showed me repeatedly why I adore him) heads the ball to Sneijder, who jumps up, turns around, and slams the ball past Buffon from a short distance. I was totally in awe.
I think I have to start cheering for the Netherlands as well. After this, they deserve my adoration.
(van Nistelrooy 26', Sneijder 31', van Bronckhorst 79')
Holland: van der Sar - Boulahrouz (Heitinga, 76'), Ooijer, Mathijsen, van Bronckhorst -
de Jong, Engelaar - Kuyt (Affelay, 81'), van der Vaart, Sneijder - van Nistelrooy (van Persie, 70')
Italy: Buffon - Panucci, Barzagli, Materazzi (Grosso, 55'),
Zambrotta -
Gattuso, Pirlo, Ambrosini - di Natale (del Piero, 64'), Camoranesi (Cassano, 75') -
Toni
Holy shit, Holland! O_O
Dude, that was the best game ever. Call me bitter, but I think this demolition served these conceited Italians well. They acted far too cocky and self-satisfied, but when it came down to it, they couldn't back it up. And the Netherlands? Baffled me in every way possible. Beautiful football combined with the fighting spirit that's necessary to beat a defensively oriented team like Italy. It was damn difficult to only pick a couple of Dutch players to bold in my line-up above because they all stood out in their own way. Sneijder dribbled the Italian defense silly, Kuyt put Zambrotta to shame every time he challenged him (and prepared two goals!), van Bronckhorst did an excellent job on the left side and even scored a beautiful goal. And Boulahrouz, sorted out at Sevilla and only called up for the national team because of Ryan Babel's injury, did the best defense job of his life and didn't even commit one single foul (at least I didn't see one). Also Ooijer, Engelaar, van Nistelrooy... Wow. And van der Sar, who had one world-class parade that eventually led to the 3-0 and almost prepared another goal.
Ironically, it didn't even look like that at the beginning. In the 18th minute, I was already cursing that damn Italian luck when Buffon attacked van Nistelrooy and made him lose his balance (kudos to Ruud for not letting himself fall down!). Buffon destroyed a clear chance, and there should have been a penalty. Therefore, I was damn glad when I realised that this time they didn't stay lucky - on the contrary, the first goal was damn unlucky because Panucci was lying behind the goal and counted as a second player between van Nistelrooy and the back of the net. Is it very evil of me to have laughed out loud for several minutes after this? ;)
And wow, those goals!! Ruud's 1-0 was brilliant already, and van Bronckhorst's 3-0 was awesome, but Sneijder's 2-0 took the cake. A quick counter attack after a corner for Italy, van Bronckhorst kicks the ball off the line and starts running forward, then crosses all the way to the other side where Kuyt is running with him, and Dirk (who, in this game, showed me repeatedly why I adore him) heads the ball to Sneijder, who jumps up, turns around, and slams the ball past Buffon from a short distance. I was totally in awe.
I think I have to start cheering for the Netherlands as well. After this, they deserve my adoration.