The coach ends his third stage in the ‘Oranje’ satisfied with the work
MADRID, 10 Dic. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Netherlands coach, Louis van Gaal, regretted the elimination in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, again at the hands of Argentina and in another penalty shootout, but he was proud of the work and of the youngsters that he added to the ‘Oranje’ before saying goodbye.
“I will not continue as coach of the Dutch team. I am very proud. I brought a lot of young players to learn. We formed a group and when I look back, I see something very positive,” he said at a press conference after the elimination, putting an end to his third stage in the ‘Oranje’ without losing a game since he took charge of the team after the last EURO.
The Netherlands ended their journey in Qatar in the quarterfinals, despite forcing extra time with a spectacular scoreboard action in the 101st minute. The ticket to the semifinals was decided in a penalty shootout for which they had prepared, more after being eliminated from Brazil 2014 from 11 meters and also by Argentina although in the semifinals.
“We’ve been taking penalties all year and then things go wrong. I asked the players to take penalties at their club and they all did. Then you miss the first two penalties and you can’t win anymore,” he told Dutch public television NOS .
Van Gaal regretted some controversial action, such as Messi’s 0-2 penalty, but he did not put the performance of the Spanish Mateu Lahoz as an excuse. “That penalty, I’m curious to know how it went exactly. Anyway, in the end you don’t lose because of the referee. In fact, we even managed a very good draw”, he finished.