‘This is big step back’

Ronald Koeman was considerably shocked by the Dutch team’s poor first half against Italy in the Nations League consolation final. After the 3-2 defeat, steam came out of the ears of the national coach. He had seen a lack of mentality among the players and blamed himself.

“This is not a lack of technical quality, but willingness. I blame myself terribly for this. It’s a big step back, I’m going to think hard about this.”

What exactly Koeman meant by ‘thinking about’, he would not say. He does not want to jettison the 4-3-3 system for the time being. “This has nothing to do with system. Now you talk about mentality and playing as a team. If we don’t have that, we are very mediocre.”

Captain Virgil van Dijk said he was embarrassed by the play of Orange, which was soon down 0-2. Koeman, too, was embarrassed by it. “Based on the first half, I was embarrassed too. Against Croatia we lost, but you saw leads. And then you play such a bad first half.”

The national coach was particularly shocked by the lack of defensive effort. In the first two goals, the Orange was surprised by rising backs. “We knew they had their backs high, then as an outfield player you are obliged to take responsibility. How that happened today … I bloody hate that.”