World Cup Preview: Netherlands - Denmark

* Kick-off: Monday 14 June, 12:30 BST
* Soccer City, Johannesburg, South Africa

13 Jun 2010 13:39:00

By Stefan Coerts

More On :  Denmark, Netherlands, Netherlands vs Denmark
netherlands team, NL vs Mexico (PROSHOTS)
Oranje take on Danish dynamite

Netherlands arrive at this game having prepared with warm-up friendlies against Mexico, Ghana and Hungary. Oranje put in some impressive performances, but they were dealt a huge blow on the injury front in the aftermath of their game against the Hungarians.
Don't Miss

Star winger Arjen Robben picked up a hamstring injury against Hungary and will probably miss Netherlands' World Cup opener on Monday. The Bayern Munich star has since worked hard with physio Dick van Toorn to return to full match fitness and travelled to South Africa at the weekend. Robben might be available for Holland's second group phase game.

Confidence is high in the Dutch ranks and players such as Robin van Persie and Rafael van der Vaart recently declared that this could be Oranje's turn to win their first World Cup, while head coach Bert van Marwijk added that Netherlands can beat any team out there.

Additionally, Wesley Sneijder and Robin van Persie have been tipped to shine at the 2010 World Cup and both players will be keen to show the world what they're capable of.

Pre-tournament friendly results have hardly been encouraging for Denmark. A win over Senegal was a positive step, but losses against Australia and South Africa  have done little to build confidence or even team spirit.

The win against Senegal might have resulted in a win, but even that game had a negative side-effect to it. Highly-rated defender Simon Kjaer picked up a knee injury in the win and has since been struggling to return to full match fitness. The Palermo star is expected to feature against Netherlands, but his preparation hasn't exactly been perfect.

Additionally, first choice goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen and striker Nicklas Bendtner aren't fully match fit. Sorensen will probably be able to play, but Bendtner is likely to miss out on Monday's game.

To make things even worse for Denmark, head coach Morten Olsen missed part of his side's World Cup preparation due to a bout of 'flu. The experienced coach is still confident that Danish Dynamite can be successful against Oranje though.

"Netherlands have no secret for us. We know everything about them and they won't be able to surprise us. I have a plan how we can keep them at bay and I'm confident we can record a good result against them," Olsen was quoted as saying.



FORM GUIDE


Netherlands
Denmark
Netherlands 6-1 Hungary
 South Africa 1-0 Denmark
Netherlands 4-1 Ghana
 Denmark 1-0 Australia
Netherlands 2-1 Mexico
 Denmark 2-0 Senegal
Netherlands 2-1 USA
 Austria 2-1 Denmark
Netherlands 0-0 Paraguay
 Denmark 3-1 USA

TEAM NEWS

Netherlands

Tricky attacker Arjen Robben isn't fully match fit yet after his hamstring injury and is expected to miss out. Therefore, Dirk Kuyt and Rafael van der Vaart will probably start, based on training sessions throughout the week. Bert van Marwijk doesn't really have any other injury worries and will utilise a 4-2-3-1 formation.

Probable Starting XI: Stekelenburg; Van der Wiel, Heitinga, Mathijsen, Van Bronkhorst; Van Bommel, De Jong; Kuyt, Sneijder, Van der Vaart; Van Persie

Denmark

Morten Olsen will probably have to make do without star attacker Nicklas Bendtner due to injury, but the Denmark coach also received some good news on the injury front in the past couple of days. Simon Kjaer and Thomas Sorensen are both expected to play after having recovered from injuries. Soren Larsen is expected to fill in for Bendtner up front.

Probable Starting XI: Sorensen; L. Jacobsen, Kjaer, Agger, Mtiliga; Rommedahl, D. Jensen, S. Poulsen, M. Jorgensen; Tomasson, Larsen

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Netherlands

Robin van Persie has been in absolutely stunning form in the warm-up friendlies Oranje played in the past couple of weeks. The Arsenal striker netted a brace against Mexico and also scored against Ghana and Hungary. The striker recently stated that he has the ambition to play at the same level as players such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi and a good performance at the World Cup would underline this ambition.

Denmark

Daniel Agger is one of Denmark's star players and the Liverpool defender will have to be in superb form against the Dutch. With Danish Dynamite expected to be on the back foot for the majority of the game, Agger probably awaits a busy game and it's up to the centre-back to keep attackers such as Van Persie and Kuyt quiet.

PREDICTION

Netherlands start the match as the favourites to win Group E, but the Danes will provide a stern test for Oranje. Denmark are a defensively sound unit, while Holland will have to make do without star attacker Arjen Robben. The Dutch still have plenty of class up front though and they are likely to find the net more than once. The Castrol World Cup predictor backs this expectation and gives the Dutch the edge with a 52 per cent chance of winning in comparison to Denmark’s 21 per cent.

Netherlands  3-1 Denmark

Think you can do better than our expert? Place a bet now on the match with Goal.com’s official betting partner Titanbet.

No trip to South Africa is complete without a visit to its most beautiful and sunniest city. Durban offers much more than sandy beaches, safaris, casinos and the World Cup, for information on what  to do and see, please click here.

Become a fan of Goal.com UK's Facebook fan page for all the latest news and insight into everything related to the beautiful game!

Follow Goal.com on Twitter

Follow Goal.com on Facebook
 
play pause open close
Inside Goal.Com
  1. Welbeck convinces Hodgson he is the man to lead the line Welbeck convinces Hodgson he is the man to lead the line

    England beat Norway 1-0 at Wembley, with the Manchester United man hitting an impressive winner to stake his claim for a starting spot at Euro 2012

  2. The five players Rodgers could sign to kick-start revolution The five players Rodgers could sign to kick-start revolution

    The new Reds boss was unveiled to the press on Friday and must immediately begin work on revitalising a thin squad with some additions in the transfer market

  3. Managerial merry-go-round keeps spinning as Lambert takes Villa job Managerial merry-go-round keeps spinning as Lambert takes Villa job

    The Scot officially left Norwich City on Saturday to become the second new boss in June, following the appointment of Brendan Rodgers at Liverpool on Friday

  4. Rodgers ushers in new Anfield era on his own terms Rodgers ushers in new Anfield era on his own terms

    The Northern Irishman inevitably expressed his delight at landing the Reds job but evidenced plenty of the steely resolve which could see him become a success at Anfield

  5. The definitive timeline of FSG's hunt for new manager The definitive timeline of FSG's hunt for new manager

    Kenny Dalglish's sacking at the end of the season sparked a massive hunt for the next Anfield boss, and the former Swansea man has been chosen after several turned the job down