Posts Tagged ‘Dirk Kuyt’

OFFICIAL WORLD CUP ROSTER: Netherlands

Thursday, May 27th, 2010

by Marc Roseblade

The Oranje were the latest top team to announce their 23 man World Cup squad.

Goalkeepers: Sander Boschker (FC Twente), Maarten Stekelenburg (Ajax), Michel Vorm (FC Utrecht)

Defenders: Khalid Boulahrouz (Stuttgart), Edson Braafheid (Celtic), John Heitinga (Everton), Joris Mathijsen (Hamburg), Andre Ooijer (PSV Eindhoven), Giovanni van Bronckhorst (Feyenoord), Gregory van der Wiel (Ajax)

Midfielders: Ibrahim Afellay (PSV Eindhoven), Nigel de Jong (Manchester City), Demy de Zeeuw (Ajax), Stijn Schaars (AZ Alkmaar), Wesley Sneijder (Inter Milan), Mark van Bommel (Bayern Munich), Rafael van der Vaart (Real Madrid)

Forwards: Ryan Babel (Liverpool), Eljero Elia (Hamburg), Klaas Jan Huntelaar (AC Milan), Dirk Kuyt (Liverpool), Arjen Robben (Bayern Munich), Robin van Persie (Arsenal)

There were no huge surprises in the players that were cut from the 27 man quad. Orlando Engelaar, Vurnon Anita, Ron Vlaar and Jeremain Lens will not travel to South Africa.

Last night the Dutch squad defeated Mexico 2-1 convincingly with a Van Persie double.

Holland are another amazing nation that have never won the World Cup. Having finished as runners-up twice (1974 & 1978), they’re looking to go the distance in South Africa.

They certainly have a squad of players capable of winning the competition and it would be refreshing to have a different name on the cup. Their fans are also among the most colourful in the world.

The future is bright, the future is Oranje!

read more from Marc at myscottishfootball.blogspot.com!

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AROUND THE WORLD: USA vs Netherlands

Thursday, March 4th, 2010

Save for an early strike from Jose Torres, the US men’s team actually PLAYED for 10 of yesterday’s 90 minutes, which peaked with a tough-as-nails goal from Carlos Bocanegra (88′) off of a Damarcus Beasely set piece. Jozy Altidore nearly equalized in injury time, leaving the Dutch defense scrambling to retain their lead.

As for Donovan… the midfielder was impeded by a flu (he’s great, but he’s no Michael Jordan), which basically resulted in a match devoid of creativity.

And then there was Wesley Sneijder. Brilliant. If (so many if’s) Donovan had been healthy, he might have been inspired to play up to Sneijder’s level, as tends to happen when the Galaxy/Eveteron man is pushed to the limit. Alas, not a great day for the USA.

After walking away with a 2-1 victory, the Dutch side have made it public that they were not impressed with the Americans.  Let the mind games begin!

If we had to pick an MVP, it would be those cool throwback 1950 jerseys. We’ve got something similar in the works at ONELOVE FC.

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KUYT PULLS 10-MAN LIVERPOOL THROUGH MERSERYSIDE DERBY

Monday, February 8th, 2010

Dirk Kuyt/photo credit: Getty Images

It was a weekend full of surprises. Everton’s loss to a 10-man Liverpool squad saw the Reds through to 4th place, thanks to the toughness of Dirk Kuyt. Torres has been out and Gerrard might as well have taken the season off. It’s Kuyt who has carried the torch through these uncomfortable months.

Liverpool Manager Rafa Benitez has already made plans to take over at Juventus next season. Few thought that he’d leave Liverpool in top-4 standing, but it’s looking like he may actually get there.

For anyone unfamiliar with Champions League qualification, England’s top 4 clubs are included each year and Liverpool has long since been a favorite.  If the Reds fail to qualify, they are almost sure to lose their star players.  If the star players go, they’ll most likely be downgraded to a mid-table performer and face more serious troubles – a la Leeds of 10 years ago.


Liverpool v Everton
Uploaded by ganztacarl. – Check out more sports and extreme sports videos.

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MERSEYSIDERS FACING UPHILL BATTLE

Wednesday, January 27th, 2010

By Jake Glavies

Steven Gerrard vs Wolverhampton

Steven Gerrard and the rest of the Liverpool squad just can’t seem to catch a break lately.

Winners of just seven of its past 24 matches, in all competitions, Liverpool had another rough outing Tuesday, drawing 0-0 with league bottom-dweller Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux. The lone bright spot was the return of Gerrard, who played his first match since leaving a Jan. 13 contest against Reading with a hamstring injury. Though the Reds are currently in fifth place in the Premier League, Aston Villa, Birmingham City and Manchester City are nipping at their heels, though they’ve played two fewer matches.

The draw further hits home just how far off last season’s second place pace Rafael Benitez’s team is at the moment. Playing without the injured Fernando Torres, the Reds managed just one shot on goal for the day. But the blame for these offensive woes can’t be placed solely on Liverpool’s shoulders. Wolves boss Mick McCarthy set out to clamp down on the Reds frontline, fielding four defenders and five midfielders. Defender Jody Craddock played a large part in the draw, as he foiled a number of promising plays.

Liverpool had a chance to go up early, but Albert Riera headed a second-minute Gerrard corner past the goal. Later, Dirk Kuyt looked to get his third goal in two games, but Craddock was there to deny him from 20 yards out.

Wolves were playing with a sense of purpose as they looked to avoid relegation and stay in the top tier in English soccer. Currently 17th in the league, the squad holds a slim one goal lead over Burnley; Hull City and Portsmouth round out the Premier League Top 20.

McCarthy’s team was surely happy to see West Ham, who rests just one spot ahead in the standings, draw 1-1 with last-place Pompey. The Hammers hold a goal differential lead over Wolves, though both teams have registered 20 points this season.

As for Liverpool, the loss drops the team just out of Champions League qualification for the time being – a spot it certainly doesn’t want to be in with such a tight group atop the league standings.

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PREMIER LEAGUE VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS: LIVERPOOL vs WOLVERHAMPTON

Saturday, December 26th, 2009

Picture 9

A home win against Wolverhampton would have been easy for the Liverpool of 4 months ago, but after a decisive loss to bottom-ranked Portsmouth, we weren’t about to jump to conclusions for today’s match.

Alberto Aquilani had his first start since joining Liverpool from AS Roma in a gazillion dollar transfer deal.  He got a standing ovation when he subbed in the final minutes, though he had little (if anything) to do with the win.  The clapping was more of a “welcome to Anfield” toast.

Liverpool started strong with crisp passing and a few graceful attempts on goal.  Twenty minutes in, the tables turned.  Wolverhampton started taking shots and, immediately, Liverpool’s confidence was deflated.  Liverpool rallied in the 60th minute when Steven Gerrard took a beautiful cross out of the air, beating three Wolves defenders and their American goalie (Hahnemann), with a perfect header.

Soon after Gerrard’s goal, Israeli midfielder Yossi Benayoun came up with a CR9-esque goal from just inside the 18.  It was 2-0 at the final whistle.

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HOLY ARSHAVIN!

Sunday, December 13th, 2009

Picture 37

Arsenal’s Andrei Arshavin is one of the most entertaining goal scorers on earth and today’s game-winner against Liverpool competes for goal of the week.

Arsene Wenger’s boys are going to be OK, but change is imminent at Liverpool.  The Reds started strong (Kuyt had moments of brilliance) and then, with the own goal, they imploded.

And WHY was Xabi Alonso back to watch his old team suffer?  (Why did he leave in the first place?)  Mascherano wasn’t bringing much to the game and Aquilani was even less effective.  Reflecting on the game as a whole, there doesn’t seem to be a dialogue between Torres and his supporting crew.  As for Benitez, we’ve respectfully decided not to join the angry mob.  The best we can say for him is NOTHING AT ALL.

photo credit: Clive Brunskill/Getty Images

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