If you were in the vicinity of my apartment at the conclusion of this game, you would’ve heard this absolute banger:1
I’m pumped for this new era of Oranje. This was a night-and-day difference from what we saw at the World Cup—and really, from what any fan of the national team has witnessed this decade. No matter who had the ball, every player was acting with the same intention: to move the ball forward, and to try to score a goal.
It sounds so simple. And yet, witnessing this core foundational aspect of Dutch soccer be used by the Dutch national team felt almost foreign. Opta, the statistics and analysis company, noted the following:
I remember that game against England very vividly: in that I remember what I was doing instead of watching it (getting a haircut). To be honest with you, my experience of Dutch soccer around that era was marked by a profound disbelief; I remember wanting to avoid the heartbreak and bitterness of watching my beloved Oranje fall to England (and I also needed a haircut, and the person I trusted only worked two days a week). Earlier that year, in what is perhaps my greatest shame, I missed the famous 4-1 Ajax victory at Real Madrid in order to squeeze in a therapy appointment. I’ll never forget being in an Uber, leaving my appointment, and checking the score to see that it was 3-0 for Ajax. I was stunned—and I immediately felt immense regret for refusing to have hope. Refusing to believe. Looking back, it’s not that I didn’t watch, it’s that I didn’t watch because I refused to believe.
I’ve since learned that lesson. I think life, to a greater extent, is about belief. It doesn’t matter if you believe in a deity, or in love, or in your country’s soccer team. It matters only that you believe. As Teun Koopmeiners was lining up to take that free kick in 2022, I remember thinking more or less these exact words: “I shouldn’t even get my hopes up. There’s no point. The odds he whips this free kick perfectly into the net are essentially zero.” And then I was proven wrong so tremendously in the seconds that followed. I’m not sure I have ever had such an explosive burst of emotion in my entire life as in that moment. Yes, the heartbreak of the eventual loss stung, but the beauty and memory of that joyous feeling will stick with me until the moment my brain stops functioning. After that goal, I made a promise to myself: that I will never, ever, stop believing. Life is too short. It makes me think of the late film critic Roger Ebert’s words in his review of the magical, beautiful, heartbreaking Italian film “Life Is Beautiful,” starring Roberto Benigni:
“‘Life Is Beautiful’ is not about Nazis and Fascists, but about the human spirit. It is about rescuing whatever is good and hopeful from the wreckage of dreams. About hope for the future. About the necessary human conviction, or delusion, that things will be better for our children than they are right now.” — Roger Ebert
If you haven’t seen that movie, I think you’d know what I’d say next.
I went a little far down that branch, but to return to the trunk of the tree: my lack of belief was warranted by past performances.
After losing the penalty shootout in 2022, I remember chatting with a fellow Dutchman on the Metro. “This is how it always is,” he said. What brings me so much joy—and what made me blast “Viva Hollandia” in this game’s aftermath—is that maybe, just maybe, that’s no longer true.
I do think there’s something to be said about Xavi being the one to implement this return to the Dutch tradition; maybe this was a klus, a job, that only a foreigner could do. Any Dutch person at the helm of the national team is going to feel immense pressure—at least one heartbreaking loss was burned into their brain as a child. You know that if you play the Dutch way, and you lose, you’ve disappointed pretty much everyone you’ve ever known. But if you play pragmatically, and you lose that way, you can at least head home and tell your friends and family: hey, I did everything I could to win. Perhaps it’s this pressure that caused Ronald Koeman to adopt a more defensive approach against Morocco, in the first knockout game of a tournament that the leaders of the KNVB, the Dutch soccer federation, said they wanted to win. The first line of that article: “The national team is going for nothing less than a World Cup win.” They had the ambition, and then an economist, who had previously predicted the World Cup winners correctly, predicted the Dutch would take it home this year. Whosever idea it was to play more defensively—Virgil van Dijk had to recently deny accusations that the plan came from him—there’s a reason that Koeman didn’t reject moving forward with the concept. Because playing defensively and controlling the game through boring, unambitious soccer was a way to play it safe. The goal was not to win; more important was to not lose.
And so I think that any Dutch coach barring Louis van Gaal—whose confidence in himself is an armor without dents—would have found himself hamstrung by this feeling. Xavi, a Spaniard who has won pretty much every major soccer trophy known to man, experiences none of this. And so maybe, for that reason, he’s a better hire than Arne Slot would’ve been. Maybe Xavi is actually the best possible hire the KNVB could’ve made.
And yes, I know this is a lot to be prophesying after just one game. But here’s the thing: it’s not going to get worse than what we saw against Germany. It’s only going to improve as Xavi better understands the talents of his players, and as the players better understand the complexities of his vision.
Nou (now), I should challenge myself here: would I have had this reaction if the game ended after the first half? Maybe not. In the first 45 minutes, there were some good moments, but the players just weren’t clicking, something that Xavi chalked up after the game to nerves. He said he told them at halftime: guys, this is not the way. I’m sure it was more complicated than that. But they came out of halftime looking like a completely different team, which was emphasized by the inclusion of midfield maestro Joey Veerman. Veerman, known for his incredible vision and passing, was the key that unlocked the German defense. I think that international soccer games are won by the players who can get the ball at their feet and create something out of nothing; Veerman is one of those players, as are Frenkie de Jong and (the currently injured) Xavi Simons.2 Remember Xavi Simons’ goal against England in the Euro 2024 semifinal, our only goal of the game? That came out of nothing. But that’s the kind of player that Simons is. And it’s the kind of player that Veerman is, too.
I think Veerman is an unquestionable starter now; the impact he made against Germany was so profound. You could argue the same for Ruben van Bommel, who hit the ball into the path of Cody Gakpo for the tying goal in one of the greatest assists I have ever seen. Pinpoint perfect, that pass was. Crysencio Summerville, the winger who started the game on the right with Gakpo on the left, may have lost his starting spot to Van Bommel, who should perhaps play on the left with Gakpo on the right, as the latter has been excelling there in his club soccer at Liverpool.
This game also had a few moments where I greatly appreciated the level of talent we have at our disposal. Around the 41st minute, the Dutch were trying to escape the German high pressure, and my jaw dropped to the floor when I saw Ryan Gravenberch coolly receive the ball, control it, and turn into an incredibly tight space to start an attack. I thought to myself: are you kidding me? Those are the kinds of moments where I’m reminded that we’re not playing with the B-team-quality side that we were about ten years ago, when the Dutch missed out on qualifying for the World Cup. Gravenberch is one of the best in the world at what he does, as are Virgil, Denzel Dumfries, Frenkie de Jong, Tijjani Reijnders, Cody Gakpo… and that’s not even including the pearls found in the Eredivisie this season with Van Bommel, Mexx Meerdink, and others.
So, yes, you could say I’m feeling very confident of winning a trophy in the next four years under Xavi, whether it be the Nations League, the Euros, or the World Cup. And I mean, hey, why not them all?3
You have to imagine that, had Xavi been the coach at the World Cup, Morocco would’ve been toast. But then I think about how dazzlingly the Dutch played under Ronald Koeman in the Nations League games against Spain—and I correct myself to think not of what could have been, but what should have been.
Xavi, both before and after the game, used some of the same words over and over, one of them being “personality.” To the Spaniard, it’s important that the players show personality. And in this, I think, lies the greatest difference with the previous Dutch teams of this decade. Because, frankly, there was no personality to be seen from any player when it came to a knockout game; it was more important that players acted as willing cogs in a machine drawn up methodically by the coach. Now, players are being told: show me who you are. Take the risk of trying something that you try all the time at your club. Ruben van Bommel’s aforementioned beaut of a pass? Anyone who watches him play will tell you: that’s him. Attempting an outside-footed pass is who he is as a player. And not only does this concept overall make for a better watch, but it means the players are having fun. That’s how you build a winning team; not by forcing them to squeeze into a mold, where every game is a task for them to achieve, but instead by letting them enjoy it all. No matter if they agreed with the tactics against Morocco, I don’t think any single Dutch player would say they “had fun” or “enjoyed” that game.
That’s all different now. Thank goodness. And I think we’re in store for something very special. Even if the trophies don’t come—luck is as important as anything else; if luck had been more on the Dutch side in this game, they would’ve handily won—we’re at least going to have a great time watching it all unfold. That’s something everyone in the Netherlands will feel refreshed to once again take pride in.
Game Highlights
Stray Thoughts
What I would give to be a fly on the wall at Dutch headquarters in the town of Zeist. Xavi had basically three days to get to know the players and get his team set up. That’s not a long time! I’m curious how he’s adapting to the very different nature of coaching an international team versus a club one.
Yeah, so, part of “luck” is having a referee that isn’t a [redacted]. And this referee disallowed a goal that should’ve stood, blew the whistle too early on a goal that also should’ve counted, and was an accessory to the singular German goal by not blowing the whistle and stopping the game when Dutch striker Brian Brobbey went down with what was clearly an injury.
Part of what sparked a couple of kerfuffles between the two teams was the decision by the German players to keep playing; Cody Gakpo called it “unsportsmanlike” after the game, and you can see here where Germany’s Joshua Kimmich (#6) turns around and sees Brobbey on the ground, and then receives a pass back from a teammate—that’s where he should have paused, or where the referee should have blown his whistle, so that Brobbey could receive medical attention. Instead, Kimmich uses the opportunity to bring more tempo into the game and push forward. I can understand why Denzel Dumfries sprints into Kimmich’s face after the goal is scored. You can disagree while also acknowledging that the Dutch have a point; I don’t think this is something that any of the Dutch players would’ve done if it were a German player on the ground clearly in distress. Maybe that’s a sign of the cultural warmth the Dutch have compared to the colder Germans. Anyway, the referee at hand won’t be so [redacted] every time. What I redacted here rhymed with the idea of the God of Love playing a game of limbo, by the way: “ducking cupid.”
The Dutch pundits were happy after this one. When Xavi came on for his postgame interview, pundit Ronald de Boer had a message for his former Barcelona teammate: “goed gedaan, maatje!” (Well done, buddy!)
Mexx Meerdink really comes off as a great guy. In the postgame interview, he admitted that he didn’t think he had been good enough lately to be called up for the Dutch team, and that when he got the call, he was at dinner with his agent and his girlfriend. Meerdink had been called up to replace the injured Donyell Malen, and now with Brian Brobbey injured, you have to imagine he is going to start and suddenly have picked up a few “caps” for his country. You never know what life will throw at you!
Xavi picked Joshua Zirkzee (25, Manchester United 🏴) to replace the injured Brobbey. Given that everyone was talking about Memphis Depay (32, Corinthians 🇧🇷), Wout Weghorst (34, Twente 🇳🇱), or newbies Zian Flemming (28, Ipswich Town 🏴) and Thijs Dallinga (26, 1. FC Köln 🇩🇪), this selection came as a bit of a surprise. But thinking about how Xavi selected his first squad, I don’t think it’s at all surprising that he chose a player who has experience with the national team while also being a potential fixture in the team during the next four years.
Ruben van Bommel has ice in his veins. He seemed completely unfazed in his postgame interview about his world-class assist, on his national team debut, that has since made world news. I am so glad to have him in the team. Talk about a killer instinct. And when asked whether he thought his pass or the finish by Gakpo was more impressive, he said the finish. Every pundit afterward agreed that it was the pass. Humble, brave, unwavering—someone get me an Oranje van Bommel jersey! What a player.
Dutch pundit Rafael van der Vaart (whom [slightly] older soccer fans will remember from his playing days) highlighted how Xavi said, “you practice as you play, you play as you practice.” Van der Vaart explained that apparently this was a common phrase of Louis van Gaal’s. I would certainly be elated to find that Van Gaal has had a few conversations with Xavi; but if not, that makes this all the more likable.
I definitely thought this post would be under 1,000 words. Oops. If you made it this far, I hope you enjoyed the read! If so, please share with any Oranje-supporting friends with the button below; I would appreciate it very much!
For anyone who’s unfamiliar: this was a song that came out as a “fan song” for the 2008 European Championship. It became a hit, and became ingrained in the Oranje culture, and you’ll especially hear it whenever the team qualifies for a major tournament, since some of the chorus translates to “we’re back, and that is great.” I personally love using it as a celebratory song to play whenever there’s a goal or a grand moment, because the first 15 seconds are immediately hype.
In case you missed a footnote I wrote in an earlier post: yes, Xavi Simons was named after his new national team coach! I’m just glad that Simons ended up playing for the Dutch instead of going the way of Dean Huijsen, who switched to Spain because “he feels Spanish.” I’ll shut up about Huijsen, because I prefer, really, not to speak. If I speak, I am in big trouble. Big trouble. And I don’t want to be in big trouble.
Alright, I recognize that this is me flying a little close to the sun here…