Captain Virgil van Dijk called it “scandalous,” Memphis Depay “super dumb” and coach Louis van Gaal “inexplicable,” as the Netherlands on Saturday blew a two-goal lead in Montenegro — and with it their chance to qualify early for the FIFA World Cup finals in Qatar.
The Netherlands are still at the top of their group after the 2-2 draw with Montenegro and have a home match against Norway in Rotterdam on Tuesday.
A goalless draw between Norway and Latvia in Oslo earlier on Saturday handed the Netherlands an unexpected chance to win the group, and they were coasting toward Qatar with a 2-0 lead after a double from top scorer Memphis Depay.
Photo: AFP
However, goals from Ilija Vukotic in the 82nd minute and Nikola Vujnovic four minutes later snatched away the punch bowl as the Netherlands had a dramatic collapse.
Van Gaal said he had to take some of the blame after his late substitutions, aimed at resting some players who had picked up knocks.
“The changes were not good, but I cannot really explain what happened,” he said.
“I’m speechless and angry. It was scandalous the way we played in the second half,” Van Dijk said in a post-match television interview.
Depay was equally candid in his analysis with Dutch NOS television.
“This is a hard blow,” he said. “We sold ourselves short, the fans who have traveled with us and the fans at home. We had it in our own hands and we gave it away completely. That is super dumb.”
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