Robben grabs his chance to shine

WORLD CUP 2010 ROUND OF 16 Netherlands 2 Slovakia1:ARJEN ROBBEN'S first start suggested a player impatient to remind us of his class. There are few with comparable gifts and a typically elegant goal instigated this victory for a Dutch side who will meet Brazil in the last eight.

Robben’s first start came later than he would have liked, a hamstring injury having deprived him of the opportunity to illuminate the group stage beyond a 17-minute spell as a replacement against Cameroon. But there was enough in this match to suggest Lionel Messi might be the only man to rival him as the player in this tournament with the most devastating left foot.

Robben’s 18th-minute goal, coupled with Wesley Sneijder’s late second, ensured an ultimately routine win, and the manner in which the Bayern Munich winger mesmerised Slovakia’s defenders will invigorate Dutch supporters before Friday’s quarter-final in Port Elizabeth.

“We prepared to face him for three days but he is an absolute genius,” said Slovakia coach Vladimir Weiss. “When I saw he was in the team I knew he would improve them by 50 per cent, and I was right.”

Sneijder, too, showed he is a man for the big occasion. He has scored two goals from midfield and he delivered the outstanding pass of this match to create the chance for Robben.

Robin van Persie is finding it more difficult to make an impact and the Arsenal striker reacted to being withdrawn by making his irritation clear to coach Bert van Marwijk.

The Dutch, however, have won all four games and were rarely troubled by a Slovakia side who could not come close to recreating their heroics in the 3-2 win over Italy.

There was only one brief flurry, midway through the second half, when the conquerors of the Azzurri created an authentic threat, but the danger created by Miroslav Stoch and Robert Vittek firing shots at Maarten Stekelenburg was minimal when considered in the context of the rest of the game. Vittek’s penalty, after Stekelenburg had upended substitute Martin Jakubko, was inconsequential, coming four minutes into stoppage time.

The Slovaks were disappointing and Van Marwijk was entitled to argue his side had had enough of the ball inside the opposition penalty area to have won more comfortably. The Dutch coach was unhappy with his team’s final pass and that it was not until so late they scored their second. He also said he was not upset by Van Persie’s reaction to being substituted.

“He was disappointed not to play the whole match,” Van Marwijk said. “He’s an attacker and he was frustrated that the ball was not coming where he wanted it. I didn’t hear what he said but I offered him my hand and he shook it.”

Van Persie said: “I was annoyed because I wanted a goal for my confidence.”

Of Robben, Van Marwijk said: “We’re so pleased he’s fit again. He was decisive for us. He’s still not the man we know, and I think there has been a little bit of fear in his mind, so it was very important for us that he played 70 minutes because he will be past that now and that gives us enormous opportunities at the front, in terms of speed and surprise.”

Perhaps other teams will understand that just because a footballer is left-footed it does not mean he has to play on that side. At Bayern, where he was arguably the Bundesliga’s outstanding player last season, Robben bucks the trend, patrolling the right flank and giving left backs an unorthodox problem, particularly when he cuts inside to shoot. Van Marwijk has seen how it works and, quite rightly, decided to do the same.

For the first goal, Sneijder’s long, raking pass turned defence into attack and Robben, with two defenders back-tracking, was happy to go it alone. In these moments the 26-year-old is a blur of control and poise. His body movement took him away from Juraj Kucka and Radoslav Zabavnik as he moved across the angle of the area before driving a low, precise shot past Jan Mucha.

Mucha went on to make a number of fine saves, denying Robben, Dirk Kuyt and Joris Mathijsen in the second half, but in a tournament in which goalkeeping mistakes have been almost as ubiquitous as sponsors’ logos, it was his error that led to Sneijder sealing Netherlands’ victory.

Giovanni van Bronckhorst took a quick free-kick and Mucha charged off his line, only for Kuyt to get there first, nod a bouncing ball round him and pass for Sneijder to slot into the exposed net.

Guardian Service