Het Nederlands Elftal had a very tumultuous and, in the end, disappointing journey in order to qualify for the European Cup 2016. After some embarassing defeats, the possibility of joining the next Euro Cup hung on the ability of the Netherlands to beat the Czech Republic AND Turkey loosing to Iceland. Neither of these was possible on Wednesday night at the Amsterdam Arena, and Oranje fans were left with their spirits low.
According to the opinion of several football analysts, the reasons why het Nederlands Elftal was unable to qualify for the European Cup 2016 were three: the managers, Robin van Persie’s performance, and low moral among the team. The switch from van Gaal’s strategy of running a “tight ship” to a very relaxed Hiddink and, lastly, to an inexperienced Danny Blind was the most significant reason as to het Nederlansd Elftal performance these past few months.
Another reason for this great loss has been attributed to Robin van Persie’s performance. In some of the articles I read, the analysts argue that van Persie’s talent is based on how he played a few years back rather than his current performance. Since the World Cup 2014, he has been more of a bench warmer than a player, and he didn’t manage to score more than two goals during this qualifying campaign.
Lastly, there was low moral among the team in addition to a personal problem between two of the star players, Robin van Persie and Memphis Depay. I don’t suppose it is easy to play in front of thousands of people only to disappoint the Oranje fans game after game and still be able to keep the spirits up.
So what will the summer bring to all of us Oranje fanst hat were ready to bring out the Dutch flags and wear our orange sweats? Here are our options:
Join our sworn enemy to the East and sing this lovely song they composed just for us. https://youtu.be/D7miZfHITnc
Unite with our neighbors to the South who happen to be among the top teams for the Euro Cup….it shouldn’t be too much of a change to switch from the orange color and our mighty lion to the Belgian Red Devils. The Belgians do have delicious beer not to mention fries so it might not be such a bad idea.
Cuddle up in a blanket and watch the 1988 Euro Cup when the Dutch team beat the Soviet Union and became Europees Kamionen! You can always look for a fellow Oranje fan to share this nostalgic moment via the Facebook event titled E.K. 1988 kijken op dvd.
Since I was a little girl, I was fascinated with languages and writing. I speak English, Spanish, Italian, Dutch and a little bit of French. I am a writer, reader, language teacher, traveler, and a food lover!
I now live in The Netherlands with my husband Riccardo, our cat Mona, and our dog Lisa, and the experience has been phenomenal. The Dutch culture is an exciting sometimes topsy-turvy world that I am happily exploring!
