Netherlands

Van Persie Can't Last 90 Minutes

Arsenal and Netherlands forward Robin van Persie has conceded that, as he is still recovering from injury, he is not yet able to play a full 90 minutes of competitive football...

Jun 5, 2008 5:53:06 AM

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Robin van Persie of Netherlands

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With the countdown to Euro 2008 drawing ever closer, the Netherlands will know they have a job on their hands to even make it out of the group stages, having been drawn in the Group of Death alongside 2006 World Cup finalists France, winners Italy and Romania.

Many believe the Oranje will fall short due to their weakness in defence, where they have failed to produce such greats as Frank de Boer or Jaap Stam from previous generations.

Up front, there are no problems whatsoever - if anything, they are spoilt for choice - which means that injury prone Robin van Persie's continued love affair with the treatment table does not come as a major blow to their aspirations.

That said, coach Marco van Basten - who will leave his country to coach Ajax after this summer's showpiece - has always been a great admirer of van Persie and, despite emphasis on fitness and only calling up fit players, made an exception for the Arsenal forward.

So far, the 24-year-old has not quite justified his selection, but having been labeled an incredible prospect for many years now, injuries have constantly hampered the talented left-footer's progress.

Having trained alone for the past two weeks, he has now joined up with the rest of the squad as the Austria-Switzerland showdown draws nearer.

Speaking before his side's opening match against Italy in Berne on Monday, Robin admitted: "I can say right now that I am ready for it, but it might be tough to play the full 90 minutes."

Chet Winter, Goal.com