Group C Netherlands v Ivory CoastThere's been a row, of course, but Marco van Basten was in confident mood yesterday as he contemplated a game in which a Dutch win would take a huge amount of pressure off ahead of next Wednesday's big showdown with Argentina.
His side's performance against Serbia and Montenegro certainly provides the Dutch coach with reason to be upbeat.
Perhaps it's just that he's been around his country's national scene far too long to worry about the spat that followed. Still, it seems safe to presume that the coach would have preferred had Robin van Persie not decided to whine to the media in wake of Sunday's 1-0 win that Arjen Robben had seen too much of the ball and mainly at his expense.
Despite the bad feeling, Van Basten will stick with the team that started against the Serbs. "Why would you change it?" he asks. He has a point, although all eyes will be on his relatively inexperienced centre backs and their ability to withstand the physical challenges presented by Didier Drogba.
Former Dutch master Johan Cruyff gave the team's performance so far the thumb's up. "The defence has improved a lot and is still developing. Wesley Sneijder is doing very well, we know his skills as a midfielder, but he has improved his defending."
During his early days as a young striker at Ajax Amsterdam, Van Basten played with Cruyff and years later the captain of the 1974 World Cup runners-up became his coach.
The pair have always been close and when after Euro 2004 the Dutch FA asked Cruyff who should be the new national team coach he put forward Van Basten as a suitable candidate. "We talk regularly, not only about football," said Cruyff.
Van Basten added: "It is always good to talk with Johan about football because he holds strong views and they can be in our best interests."
The Dutch come into the game unbeaten in their last 13 games, the longest such run in the world at present, while the Africans have never beaten any side of their stature.
They know that anything less than a victory tonight will, however, almost certainly mean an early trip home and, if they can play the way they did against Argentina, while taking the chances they create this time, then they might well be in with a shout.
"They have to win and will do everything for it," said Van Basten. "We will try to play our own game, though that will be tough against a strong opponent."
Striker Ruud van Nistelrooy also underlined the strength of the African side, who are making their World Cup debut. "It will be difficult because their display against Argentina is the best I have seen so far this tournament," he said last night, referring to Ivory Coast's 2-1 opening defeat.
Ivory Coast coach Henri Michel said yesterday his team have a "knife at their their throat".
"We know that if we lose we have to go home and that was not why we came to Germany," the French man said. "We did well in the opening match, but our opponent punished the small mistakes we made through a lack of experience.
"Now we have to prove what we are capable of and that we learned our lesson. At this moment I am not sure if we will start with the same team. But I have the possibility to change a player, though there is no reason to change everything."
Drogba will again lead the attack, but Aruna Dindane, rather than Bonaventure Kalou, is likely to be alongside him this time.
Elsewhere, it should be the same line-up that took the field in Hamburg where Michel and his men will feel a little unlucky not to have taken a point.
