World Cup: Senegal-Netherlands 0-2, Gakpo and Klaassen decide

From our correspondent Fabio Bianchi

November 21st
– DOHA (Qatar)

Long live cynicism, and luck too, if you like. Holland takes off in the World Cup with a round 2-0 against Senegal which does not reflect the progress of the match, but indulges some old football saying. Cissè’s men play better, they even go close to taking the lead but between an indecision in front of goal and a save by the surprising Noppert, they pay the penalty at the first mistake. And in an attempt to recover they double at the end of the interminable recovery (9 minutes).

On Sarr’s Wings

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Senegal deserved something more in this challenge that may not be excellent from a technical point of view, but open and with flashes of entertainment. Senegal, which started strong, started playing the game without reverential fears, forcing Holland to start again. Sarr has put a strain on the estate of De Ligt, preferred to Timber by Van Gaal and perhaps he did well. However, the oranje holy man also chose to leave Koopmeiners on the bench, who knows why. His power in the middle was missing, Senegal found easy spaces in which to wedge, it was only missing in the final act. The Netherlands relied on De Jong who played across the pitch, perhaps too much, because due to a lack of lucidity he made two blunders: the first a stone’s throw from Mendy when he dribbled one too many times and devoured the most tempting opportunity of the first round, the second in his area when he gave the ball to a Van Dijk who was coming out, and Senegal almost didn’t take advantage of it.

Occasions and mockery

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In the second round it was again Senegal to push, but Holland stepped up. Only that he could not find support to sting. With all due respect to Janssen and Berghuis, Van Gaal fielded the poorest oranje forward in 20 years. Depay’s entry alone, not at its best, enriched the offensive manoeuvres, but it was Senegal that came close to scoring twice, the first with Dia and then with Pape Gueye, who came on in the second half. Noppert answered no. Instead Mendy, left alone by Cissè, after a good race at the first wrong exit was mocked by the back of the head of Gakpo, the best of the oranjes. Depay’s shot before the final whistle, badly rejected by Mendy, allowed Klassen to rejoice in the tap-in. Too much grace, Van Gaal. To win the World Cup, as he said, it will take much more.