I like the reaction on the goal in the first seconds. They are now tired though. Mis passing shows that.
I like how they keep trying. the reaction on the second goal has not been bad. Not top either, but not that bad.
Lol, Melis is such a blind horse. She runs past her opponent, anticipates on the high ball, forgets to collect and is goes on without, Such a clown of a footballer.
Damn. Last minutes provided hope with the 2-1, but too late. So much work ahead. i don't think they were chanceless in this game, then again japan did not make most of their chances either.
First WC for the Netherlands. Much work ahead, but there are things to build on. We need to improve the firs touch and the DM must become better in managing distribution and being alert to not get caught when turning around and choosing a certain passing lane. More movement in attack, better heading (defensive and attacking), while also covering shorter in the box. Sometimes a dangerous situation could have been prevented if the CB's would just step forward and would demonstrate better anticipation. Too many times I saw them being afraid and just walking back. I would also like to see better help for the backs. When Melis with her speed went 1 vs 1 there were quickly 2 sometimes even 3 Japanese. Dutch girls left the backs on their own. Japanese also packed the box better when defending. Dutch girls need to play more as a collective, attacking and defensive. Congrats to Japan. Proper second goal and today the better team. Netherlands needs to look ahead and continue to become a force in women football just like with the gents. Time is on our side, the infrastructure and coaching is there. It is also the fastest growing sport under women in the Netherlands I think. Enough to expect more from the Orange lionesses
No shame in losing against the reigning world champions. And yes, Holland will only get better from here. They already looked better in this game then they did their first game
Just finished watching the 2nd half this morning. The Lionesses were clearly drained in the final 20 minutes and could not take advantage of any counter opportunities. I agree with DRB300 about the weaknesses of this team. For all the praise, I thought Miedema was quite poor; her footwork was bad and she was a step too slow on getting to the ball. There was a lack of anticipation about where the open player was going to be and the handling speed was weak. Defense was surprising to me as the center backs were very good on balls in the air and generally in the right position. It was a poor clearance that gave away the first Japan goal but the Rising Sun's second goal was beautiful, maybe six passes altogether before the shot came in, Dutch keeper stood no chance. Other than three or four lopsided scores in the group play most of the games I have watched have been well contested. Unfortunately all the teams are flawed; very few players do well in tight situations and teams that press all over the field tend to disrupt the play very easily. However this style of play takes a toll on fitness and of course the artificial surface and heat do not help things. Temperatures on the field at the Norway/England match were over 40C. they have these small rubber pellets on the pitch to help cushion it and it gets in the player's shoes, clothing and sticks on their skin. I doubt FIFA would have the courage to impose these conditions on a men's tournament (though they are planning to play in Qatar so who knows). Other side of the draw has the three best teams in the tournament (US, Germany and France) but only one will make it to the finals. Dutch now have to play a mini-tournament to see if they can go to the Olympics as the #3 Euro team. It will be tough as they will have to deal with Sweden, Norway, and another good team (forget which one). In the end a decent performance and they know what needs to be improved.
Netherlands gave up too much spaces for Japan. I enjoyed Japan's performance which reminded me a lot of Spain (men). Hosting Women Euro 2017 will be good. Germany and France are in their own classes but Netherlands together with Norway, England, Sweden, Swiss are catching up.
+1, great wing play on the right side; she's just flying past the German defenders. They really do need to get the first goal otherwise the mental part might creep in and they will make a mistake. I don't like the positioning of the French keeper, she's out way to far and her punch in the middle of the half was less than convincing. I would not be surprised if she makes a keeper error and concedes a goal.