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World Cup 2010: Brazil coach Dunga admits Netherlands star Arjen Robben is an 'exceptional' talent
Former World Cup winner also coy on criticisms of his footballing style...
1 Jul 2010 19:54:00
By Subhankar Mondal
Brazil coach Dunga has underlined the impact Netherlands winger Arjen Robben can have on Friday's World Cup quarter-final clash between the two sides, calling him an 'exceptional player'.
The two heavyweights will battle it out at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Friday afternoon for a place in the semi-finals.
Looking ahead to the match, Dunga expressed his admiration for the Bayern Munich star and earmarked him as a potentially decisive player.
"Without doubt, Robben is an exceptional player," he said at Brazil's pre-match media briefing. "He's a very technical player and if you look at some of Bayern's matches last season, you'll see that he was decisive. A decisive player always makes the difference."
Dunga also played down criticisms thrown at him for not adopting a more free-flowing attacking style and made it clear who the boss was.
"Every debate is positive because if we have 1000 heads thinking, it's better than just one. Some things are useful, others are not.
"Everyone looks at football in a different way and likes one type of player or the other. We have to recognise the good and bad things and see the things that don't add nothing."
The 1994 World Cup winner continued by saying he is expecting a high quality match against the Dutch on Friday.
"The two teams try to play and have great technical quality," said Dunga. "They do what everyone likes, which is to try to dribble and be creative in search for the goal. So I think it will be a good match.
"I didn't have the opportunity to see the pitch. Now, those are the two fundamental things for the match: the pitch and the ball. I hope that the pitch is good for the players tomorrow."
Dunga was part of the 1994 and 1998 World Cup teams that defeated the Netherlands in the knockout stages on both occasions.
"The penalty [I scored in '98] was to reconfirm the one from '94. Because if I missed, people would have said that I was lucky in '94," he said, reflecting on his performances in the two matches.
"In that match, we had to reconfirm what happened in '94. Those were very tough games against Holland. Playing those games against them was thrilling."
Who will come out on top? Check out Castrol Football's 2010 FIFA World Cup Match Predictor.
| Bet: | Returns: | Brazil £15.33 | Draw £37.50 | Mexico £55.00 |
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| Bet: | Returns: | Brazil £16.20 | Draw £42.00 | Mexico £50.00 |
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| Bet: | Returns: | Brazil £16.15 | Draw £38.00 | Mexico £55.00 |
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| Bet: | Returns: | Brazil £15.70 | Draw £38.00 | Mexico £60.00 |
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| Bet: | Returns: | Brazil £15.80 | Draw £41.00 | Mexico £57.00 |
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The two heavyweights will battle it out at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Friday afternoon for a place in the semi-finals.
Looking ahead to the match, Dunga expressed his admiration for the Bayern Munich star and earmarked him as a potentially decisive player.
"Without doubt, Robben is an exceptional player," he said at Brazil's pre-match media briefing. "He's a very technical player and if you look at some of Bayern's matches last season, you'll see that he was decisive. A decisive player always makes the difference."
Dunga also played down criticisms thrown at him for not adopting a more free-flowing attacking style and made it clear who the boss was.
"Every debate is positive because if we have 1000 heads thinking, it's better than just one. Some things are useful, others are not.
"Everyone looks at football in a different way and likes one type of player or the other. We have to recognise the good and bad things and see the things that don't add nothing."
The 1994 World Cup winner continued by saying he is expecting a high quality match against the Dutch on Friday.
"The two teams try to play and have great technical quality," said Dunga. "They do what everyone likes, which is to try to dribble and be creative in search for the goal. So I think it will be a good match.
"I didn't have the opportunity to see the pitch. Now, those are the two fundamental things for the match: the pitch and the ball. I hope that the pitch is good for the players tomorrow."
Dunga was part of the 1994 and 1998 World Cup teams that defeated the Netherlands in the knockout stages on both occasions.
"The penalty [I scored in '98] was to reconfirm the one from '94. Because if I missed, people would have said that I was lucky in '94," he said, reflecting on his performances in the two matches.
"In that match, we had to reconfirm what happened in '94. Those were very tough games against Holland. Playing those games against them was thrilling."
Who will come out on top? Check out Castrol Football's 2010 FIFA World Cup Match Predictor.
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