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Robben And Sneijder
Champions League: Two Dutch number 10's have emerged from the shadows as the fulcrum of their team and the twin threat for their country - Arjen Robben and Wesley Sneijder
Lee Bennett
The UEFA Champions League has reached its climax and a competition that always manages to write its own headlines has produced another; albeit a headline that few would have predicted but one that could have significant ramifications for the 2010 World Cup.
This was a season when Real Madrid were desperate to justify their crazy spending by lifting the trophy on home turf; when Manchester United & Wayne Rooney were intent on proving Real's folly by winning it in Cristiano Ronaldo's backyard; and when Barcelona & Lionel Messi were fully expected to trump them all and establish themselves as one of history's greatest ever teams.
From the ashes of these high profile failures two orange number 10's have emerged from the shadows as the fulcrum of their team and the twin threat for their country. Saturday 22nd May will see Holland's Arjen Robben and Wesley Sneijder compete against each other for club football's greatest prize at the Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid - the home from which they were evicted as surplus to requirements just a year ago. Sunday 11th July could see them line up together at Soccer City in Johannesburg in the World Cup final.
As Ronaldo, Kaka and company breezed into Real Madrid, Robben & Sneijder were going the other way; experiencing that familiar feeling of rejection that questions the eternal allure of Los Blancos. There is a long list of careers left tattered and torn by the seductive white lights of Spain's capital and it's refreshing to see a couple that have bucked the trend and who now have the perfect stage to bloody the nose of their former employers.
Bayern moved quickly to snap up Robben who was "forced" to depart after the big name arrivals in the summer of 2009. The winger had been a success under Berndt Schuster and was reluctant to leave but given little choice. At Bayern he has flourished and overshadowed his opposite winger, Frank Ribery (Ribery is banned for the final). A season of dazzling performances, coming in from the right wing, has culminated in decisive goals and match winning performances in every knockout round of the Champions League. A recent hat-trick in a 7-0 Bayern Bundesliga win took his season's tally to 20 goals in 31 games and underlined his influence on Der Bayern.
When Real Madrid signed Wesley Sneijder in the summer of 2007 he was given the number 23 shirt recently vacated by David Beckham. He quickly became an important member of the team and a year later when Robinho departed for the riches of Eastlands, Sneijder was given his number 10 shirt, but within a year he was taking the same revolving door as Robben.
Real's loss was Jose Mourinho's gain. Sneijder became one of the final pieces in The Special One's Inter master plan, adding much needed creativity and flair to a typically solid unit. He has become the heartbeat of an Inter side that will be slight bookies' favourites to win the Champions League for the first time in 45 years.
Beware The Big Orange Fellas
This story is great news for Robben's Bayern Munich and for Sneijder's Inter Milan but it is doubly good news for their national side, Holland. The Flying Dutchmen could be a real force in South Africa this summer; if they can curb the chaos and in-fighting that has dogged several previous campaigns they have the armoury to reach the heights of 1988 when Koeman, Gullitt & van Basten inspired them to European Championship glory in Germany.
A perfect World Cup qualifying campaign saw Netherlands become the first team to qualify for the finals, winning all eight games and conceding just two goals. A two goal a game average displays an efficiency that bodes well. The silky talents of Robben & Sneijder are allied with the flair of Rafael van der Vaart, Robin van Persie & Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and built on a solid bedrock provided by Mark van Bommel (who will accompany Robben in Madrid) and Manchester City's dynamic midfielder Nigel de Jong. With the exception of 33-year-old van Bommel, who provides the crucial experience, all the aforementioned players are in their prime aged 25, 26 or 27. Another important part of the Clockwork Orange machinery, Dirk Kuyt, is 29.
Drawn in Group E against Denmark, Cameroon and Japan they should have little trouble reaching the knockout phase where one of Italy, Paraguay & Slovakia will lie in wait. The big complication is that they are in the Spain-Brazil half of the draw but given Spain's injury problems, and what is a weaker Brazil side by their own high standards, it may be the two favourites who will have the greater worries should a quarter final clash arrive.
Holland are currently fourth in the FIFA world rankings and eighth in the betting at around 14/1. Robin van Persie has missed a large part of the season but will be fresh if he recovers in time. Much relies on van Persie being 100% fit. Robben, Sneijder & van der Vaart have only played around 30 games so burn out shouldn't be an issue.
As with many of the fancied teams their defence is their weakness and may prove their downfall but coach Bert van Marwijk has them well organised and is backed by a coaching team that contains a couple of inspirational ex-players in Philip Cocu and Frank de Boer.
Cocu and de Boer have been there, done it, and got the match ball. Neither reached a major international final though and Holland haven't appeared in a World Cup final since back to back defeats in the "total football" years of 1974 and 1978.
If all the pieces click into place 2010 could be their year again and their chance to go one better. Beware the Dutch, the big orange fellas are on the march.
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