Dutch give Estonia hunger for big fish

"Tomorrow the world starts again," said Arno Pijpers on Saturday night in the Lillekula Stadium in Tallinn. What the Dutch manager of Estonia had meant was that tomorrow the World Cup starts again. "We will be training in the morning, and again on Monday afternoon. Then we will start preparing for Ireland."

That Estonia had just come close to one of the great upset results in European football against his native national side could hardly have been forgotten so quickly by Pijpers, but he was emphasising the professionalism he has tried to engender in his short time in charge of the tiny Baltic republic. Because of their geographical and population size, Estonia, or Eesti to the locals, will nearly always be guaranteed underdog status, but Pijpers does not see that as an excuse.

"All these players are full-time," he said, the majority of them coming from the one club, Flora Tallinn, whom Pijpers also manages. "Professionalism in Estonia is well-organised. You could also see that physically tonight - the players from Holland were not fitter."

Pijpers must take credit for that. Appointed late last October a couple of weeks after Estonia had lost meekly 2-0 at Lansdowne Road, this former assistant manager of the Netherlands has made quite an impact on Estonian football in his seven months in charge. Saturday's defeat to Holland was Estonia's first in eight matches in that period and while a couple of those games were friendlies against the likes of Hong Kong and Kyrgyztan, it says everything about Estonian improvement that they were seven minutes away from shocking Louis van Gaal's side.

It is easy to see how Pijpers makes an immediate impression upon people. Sitting beside Van Gaal on Saturday after the match, with chants of "Eesti, Eesti" still hanging in the air, Pijpers had that same confident, authoritative demeanour as his one-time superior. The Derby County goalkeeper Mart Poom would have reason to be less enthusiastic than most about Pijpers given that because of a shoulder injury - and Pijpers' selection policy - Poom has played less games under the Dutchman than Poom's theoretical number two, Martin Kaalma.

Yet Poom was full of praise for Pijpers, calling him no less than a cultural revolutionary. "Arno Pijpers is very well-educated because he has been working with Louis van Gaal," said Poom. "Although he's young, he is quite experienced. He has been a very good influence and has changed, quite dramatically, how we play. It's more Dutch, he tries to play with three strikers or with wingers, 4-3-3.

"But he can also adjust. He likes us to play a short passing game, play out from the back. And he has also brought other Dutchmen into the system to coach Estonian coaches, to try to change the culture. Tonight was his first defeat in eight games in charge. That's quite an achievement for a country like Estonia.

"Of the former states of the Soviet Union, I think we are now third behind Russia and Ukraine. That shows good progress."

In the excitement of Saturday Pijpers was even asked if Estonia's next aim was to qualify for the next European Championships. His answer was from the Van Gaal school of tact. "I think it's really stupid to say that. If we can do this job with vision, then after some years, four or five, there will be a result. It is better just to say that we are developing and that we will develop."

The new stadium, even if still surrounded by building site rubble, is further evidence of Estonia's progression. When it is finished it will hold 15,000 and will be a tight, atmospheric arena.

But Pijpers' contribution has been on the pitch. When the Irish players run out they are likely to recognise only five of those they defeated in October. Saturday night's best player, the centre-half Raio Piirja (22), did not feature in Dublin. Nor did the 20-year-old midfielder Jevgeni Novikov, feisty enough to give Mark Kinsella and Matt Holland an annoying time.

Then there is the likely striking partnership of Indrek Zelinski and Andres Oper, scorers of the goals against Holland. Zelinski was only a substitute in Dublin and Oper was not given many opportunities to display his turn of foot. It could be different in Tallinn. Moreover, those hoping the Estonians will be drained by their weekend exertions overlook the individual hunger that lurks within each player to earn a move abroad.

Yes, Saturday was a major occasion for Estonia, their 100th international since independence, their first in a new stadium; but what Mick McCarthy's players should be wary of is Poom's statement: "The one thing that has been missing is the big win. We've drawn against Scotland twice, we've drawn against Finland and beaten them, and we've beaten smaller countries. But we need a big win. Maybe Wednesday. Ireland are a big fish now."