Disappointing goalless draw for Oranje.

Oranje wanted desperately to play a good match. But it keeps on failing… Saturday, Oranje wasn’t able to win or score against Rumania in a disappointing match. Despite the 0-0, Oranje still leads in group G, although Rumania and Bulgaria have the same number of loss-points. Oranje has played one match more than the two opponents.

Marco van Basten presented a surprising line-up, just before the match. Both De Zeeuw and Seedorf were benched. During the week, it seemed van Basten wanted the AZ-midfielder to start for the first time in his young career. But at the very last moment, van Basten got cold feet and depended on Denny Landzaat to take the controlling position.

Holland’s midfield consisted of Landzaat, Sneijder and Van der Vaart and funnily enough, it was Rafael van der Vaart who played in the more controlling role, just in front of defense.Sneijder was playing in the offensive – number 10 – role supporting center striker Huntelaar.

The only two opportunities for Oranje were two long distance striker in the last part of the first half. Both van der Vaart and Sneijder gave it a go. The Rumanians had three opportunities to score.

After the break, the quality of the play grew worse. The Rumanians were organized well and Oranje had a lot of trouble finding openings. Wingers Robben and Babel hardly ever were able to take on their direct opponents. Slowly the atmposphere in De Kuip changed. The normally over-positive Oranje-legion supported the team with cynical laughter and boo-ing. It didn’t inspire the Dutch players. But Wednesday already, there’s a fair chance for Oranje to revenge themselves, playing the away game against Slovenia.