Portugal 2 - Netherlands 1: Ronaldo Leads Portugal Into The Quarterfinals

After receiving heavy criticism for his lackluster performances for the Selecção, Cristiano Ronaldo scored two goals to lead Portugal to a 2-1 victory over the Netherlands in Kharkiv.  It was a rematch of the notorious ‘Battle of Nuremburg’ that these countries played in during the second round of the 2006 World Cup, in which four red, and sixteen yellow cards were
issued.  The Portuguese victory eliminated the Dutch in embarrassing fashion.  This marks the first time that the Netherlands lost each group game in a major tournament. 

In addition to defeating the Portuguese by two goals, the Dutch also needed the Germans to defeat Denmark if they were to advance.  Facing such a daunting task, Dutch manager, Bert Van Marwijk finally selected a more offensive lineup.  The lethal Klaas-Jan Huntelaar started up top, and the crafty Rafael Van der Vaart was in the midfield.  While this was not the all out attack I hoped for, it was better than previous selections.  They still played an ineffective back four along with Nigel de Jong as the holding midfielder.

The opening fifteen minutes was the Dutch high watermark at Euro 2012.  They came out playing ‘Total Football’ with the Portuguese on their heels.  They set the tempo early and attacked.  They nearly took the lead in the 6^th minute during an impressive build-up that included a nifty Arjen Robben back-heel, and a Wesley Sneijder volley that just cleared the post.  The one glaring issue was the slow pace at which they attacked.  There were too many Dutch players standing still rather than moving into open space or making diagonal runs for through balls.  In addition, they often seemed too content to merely pass the ball around in the back without moving forward.  In spite of the slow tempo, they got the opening goal in the 11^th minute off of a fantastic curling shot by Van der Vaart from the top of the eighteen.  The threat Robben offers paid dividends as he drew the attention of three Portuguese players before setting up Van der Vaart in open space.  With news that Germany took a 1-0 lead against Denmark, the Dutch had reasons for optimism.

Strangely, the Dutch lead seemed to deflate their performance.  Furthermore, the defense showed itself to be abysmal again.  Not only was their marking poor, but they also made several unnecessary mistakes with the ball.  Gregory Van Der Wiel’s horrid giveaway to Cristiano Ronaldo provided him with a breakaway in the 18^th minute, but the Dutch escaped with a clean sheet intact.  It seemed like it was only a matter of time until the Portuguese got the equalizer, and it finally came in the 28^th minute as a result of a giveaway by defender Jetro Willems.  Willems’s poor clearance led to Joao Pereira’s through ball that Ronaldo buried past the keeper.

After the Portuguese equalizer, they controlled the remainder of the half.  Ronaldo found numerous seams in the Dutch defense.  He could have scored a hat trick during the opening forty-five minutes.   With news of the Danish equalizer, Dutch chances seemed remote.  One would think that they would come out full of vigor in the second half, but this was not the case.

The Dutch maintained the slow pace that haunted them in the early stages.  There were just too many players standing around.  Huntelaar was called offside on a diagonal run in the 63^rd minute, which was the first one I saw from the Oranje.  This should have happened throughout the entire game. 

Meanwhile, the Portuguese went about their business and remained the more menacing side.  Ronaldo added to his tally when he scored in the 74^th minute after a great pass from Nani.  Ronaldo showed plenty of confidence and composure as he calmly slid the ball past Maarten Stekelenburg for the go-ahead goal.  Needing three goals in the final fifteen minutes, it was just a matter of time until the Euro 2012 nightmare concluded.  The final ten minutes summed up the Dutch tournament as Van der Vaart hit the post, while Huntelaar and Van Persie both missed the net from close range.  It was not meant to be.

The Portuguese were the deserving side as they advanced to the quarterfinals.  They are a solid team in the back, they have creativity in the midfield, and they arguably possess the best player in the world.  They are a dangerous side that can make a run in the tournament.  They face the Czech Republic in the quarterfinals, and I think they will win.  Depending on which team they face in the semi-finals, they may play for the championship.

For the Dutch, an epic catastrophe is the most appropriate description of what occurred.  In a game that started so well, it ended very humbling.  Van Marwijk should not be criticized for the lineup selection this time around as there was plenty of attacking support.  Their tempo was painfully slow, which eroded their ability to penetrate the Portuguese defense.  The defending and attacking players never clicked together.  They appeared as separate factions rather than a cohesive unit.  The backline along with De Jong acted as if they were isolated on an island.  Besides a few attempts by Willems, not a single defender went forward to support the midfield and forwards.  There was too much of a gap in the middle that prevented them from achieving success.  

In addition, several top players did not perform to the standards they usually do.  Most notably, Robin Van Persie was almost invisible throughout.  The few times he had the ball he either went backwards or missed the target badly.  Huntelaar did not have a good attempt on goal until the 87^th minute.   These two combined for nearly 80 goals during the 2011-12 season and they barely made an impact.  Although he provided several glimpses of how great he is, Arjen Robben was not involved enough.  The lone bright spot was Wesley Sneijder.  Sneijder worked hard throughout on both ends of the field.  I already maligned the defense, but I will mention again how incredibly poor their marking was.  This concludes a tournament to forget for the Dutch.  Although they were in a tough group, the team did not perform well or show enough effort to merit the return of manager, Bert Van Marwijk.  Undoubtedly, the KNVB will make numerous changes after such a debacle.

By Jeff Graceffo