Saturday June 19, 2010 Group Stage: Group E Finished Moses Mabhida Stadium

Netherlands 1 - 0 Japan

  • Sneijder 53’

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  1. Sneijder fires Dutch to win

    Sneijder fires Dutch to win

    Netherlands maintained their 100 per cent record at the World Cup with a 1-0 win over Japan at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban. More

  • Live Commentary

    Time:90'
    • Netherlands
    • Japan
    • 90'+4 There it is! All over in Durban and Netherlands beat Japan 1-0 thanks to Wesley Sneijder's blast in the second half! The Dutch go top of Group E with six points from six!
    • 90'+3 Nervy closing moments for the Dutch...
    • 90'+2 Ooh! Penalty to Japan as Nagamoto goes down in the box under the challenge of De Jong! No! The ref's actually pointing for a goal kick!
    • 90' Here it is! Oooh! Japan nearly equalise! Okazaki fires wide after a flick-on sent him through! What a chance!
    • 89' Netherlands should really have had three by now... as it is, Japan are still in with a shout at the death.
    • 88' Oooh! Affelay again! So close to a Dutch second! Huntelaar lays it on for him, but it's another great save by the keeper!
    • 87' Here comes another Dutch change... Huntelaar for Van Persie.
    • 86' That would have settled things... is he going to be made to regret that miss?
    • 85' Affelay is through here! Must be! No! Kawashima is off his line in a flash to make a decent save at the substitute's feet!
    • 83' Affelay comes on to replace goalscorer Sneijder...
    • 82' Tulio nearly gets to a deep cross at the back stick!
    • 81' Morty says: "keeper should have had that one. soft goal."
    • 80' Match image More Dutch celebrations
    • 79' Dutch possession is down to 63 per cent now...
    • 78' Here come Japan, looking for a late equaliser... Mathijsen deals with Nagatomo's run though.
    • 77' Japan make a double change... Hasebe replaced by Okazaki. And Okubo is replaced by Tamada...
    • 75' Fifteen minutes to play and the Dutch are closing in on their second win of the tournament so far.
    • 74' Sneijder whips in a decent-looking ball but it's dealt with by the Japanese defence.
    • 73' Vuvuzelas Are Pure Evil has got their wish (sort of): "Holland should try to bring Elia in and take Kuyt out. I am Dutch and I never liked Kuyt. Elia is better and more creative player!"
    • 72' Van der Vaart is taken off and replaced by the explosive Elia.
    • 71' Match image Sneijder and Heitinga celebrate the goal
    • 70' Nakamura delivers the corner but the Dutch eventually get it clear.
    • 69' Now it's Endo who delivers a great ball into the mixer... van Persie this time slices behind for a corner! Japan on the up!
    • 68' Ooh! Great ball into the Dutch box... van der Wiel is forced to concede a corner!
    • 66' Okuba lets fly again! This time his effort from outside the box is wide of the mark, but Japan are definitely looking more dangerous now.
    • 65' Nakamura can play his 100th international match at this World Cup. He is now on 98 caps. Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi (117) and Yuji Nakazawa (106) are the two players in the Japan squad to have collected a century of caps.
    • 64' Here comes that change... Matsui is replaced by Nakamura.
    • 63' Japan are preparing to bring on a sub...
    • 62' Japan have lost both of their matches in 2010 against European opposition. Their last win outside Japan against a European nation was nearly three years ago when they beat Switzerland 4-3 in Austria in September 2007, coming back from 2-0 down.
    • 61' Abe flicks on Endo's free-kick, but there's not enough power on it to trouble Stekelenburg.
    • 60' It's Japan's turn now to enjoy a bit of possession and sustained pressure on the Dutch goal.
    • 59' The second goes in towards the near post, where it's headed behind for yet another. The third is headed clear by Van Bommel...
    • 58' Japan win another corner, which goes short to Matsui... and he wins another one of Mathijsen.
    • 57' Here come Japan again as Honda feeds Endo on the left... it comes to Okubo who again opts to let fly! Over the bar, but Japan have responded well to going a goal down.
    • 56' Ooh! Okubo does really well to get past and hold off Van Persie before striking on target! Stekelenburg makes the save!
    • 55' That goal has been coming this half... Netherlands have been a great deal more threatening than before the break.
    • 54' Actually, replays show that Kawashima should really have done better with that one... the Jabulani strikes again?
    • 53' GOAL! SNEIJDER PUTS THE DUTCH INTO THE LEAD! What a hit from Sneijder! He absolutely cracks it from the edge of the area... the keeper can only divert it into the other corner of the net and the Dutch lead 1-0!
    • 52' Tulio heads the corner clear... but Netherlands have already looked more dangerous in five minutes of this half than they did in the entire opening period!
    • 51' It's a great delivery... Kuyt is lurking at the back stick but Tulio does really well to head behind for a corner!
    • 50' The Dutch win another free-kick and van der Vaart stands over it... We're not the only ones frustrated
    • 49' Van Persie again! Ooh! Van Bommel picks him out with a long ball through... but his first-time volleyed effort is poor and rolls tamely wide of the post!
    • 48' Better signs from the Dutch already...
    • 47' Van Persie! Ooh! He gets his head on van Bronkhorst's cross but it's straight at the keeper!
    • 46' No changes at the break to tell you about... although it can't be long before the Dutch try something different.
    • 46' Here we go! Back underway in Durban!
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    • 45'+1 There goes the half-time whistle and the teams head in at the break at 0-0... pretty poor opening period.
    • 45' Van der Vaart lets fly with a hopeful effort from wide on the right... Kawashima holds onto the effort without any problems.
    • 44' This is poor. One additional minute to be played.
    • 43' There has never been more than one goal in Japan's second match at a World Cup and all three matches have been played against European opposition. They have won one (1-0 v Russia), drawn one (0-0 v Croatia in 2006) and lost one (0-1 v Croatia in 1998).
    • 42' Japan are ending the half well though... Netherlands have lost their way a bit.
    • 41' Honda has a crack at goal from 40 yards out... but, in keeping with dead balls in the rest of the tournament, it's over the bar and the keeper isn't troubled.
    • 40' Here goes Honda, breaking forward... he's brought down by De Jong and Mathijsen... free-kick to Japan.
    • 39' Van Bommel looks to dink the ball over towards van der Vaart but it's too long and the ball bounces out for a goal kick.
    • 38' Matsui sends Komano free down the right hand side... there's options for Japan here! Stekelenburg is brought into his first real action of the day to deal with a crisp strike from Matsui, who teed up himself for a volley on the edge of the box!
    • 37' Endo takes the free-kick towards the far post... Endo rises! But he can't direct his header on target...
    • 36' The first yellow of the game! It goes to van der Wiel, for a deliberate block on Matsui...
    • 35' Sneijder now puts a free-kick into the Japan box.. easily headed clear.
    • 34' Netherlands have enjoyed 71 per cent of possession so far... but so far they have lacked the guile to unlock the Japanese defence.
    • 33' Endo delivers the free-kick into the box... Honda's there! But his header goes well over the bar.
    • 32' Mathijsen is pulled up for a foul on Honda and Japan have a free-kick.
    • 31' Van Bronckhorst is caught by the trailing boot of Komano... he goes down but is back on his feet soon enough.
    • 30' Half an hour gone and the most interesting thing so far has been the fans in the stands... Proof here
    • 29' Van der Vaart, who is involved in most things at the moment, gets to the by-line but his cross is blocked...
    • 29' Nakazawa is hauled down by Van der Vaart but Japan can't make anything of the free-kick.
    • 28' Team news for the afternoon kick-off - injuries to defensive duo John Mensah and Isaac Vorsah have forced Ghana's coach to make changes to his starting line-up. More here
    • 27' That's a good ball from Van der Vaart out wide to Kuyt.... but he goes backwards to van Bommel and the Dutch move loses its momentum.
    • 26' Match image Honda drives forward
    • 25' Komano has been off the pitch again for some running repairs to that wound he sustained earlier.
    • 24' Van Persie holds off Nakazawa with his hand... the Japanese defender goes down like the proverbial sack of spuds, but there's nothing there really. Match image
    • 23' Optapoalo says: "Holland have won their 3 World Cup games against Asian sides, scoring 10 goals in the process."
    • 22' Not much happening in this one at the moment, to tell the truth. It's really not caught fire yet.
    • 21' Neat footwork from Matsui in the middle of the pitch, but the Dutch soon win the ball back.
    • 20' Van Persie looks to jink past Tulio, but the Brazilian-born defender is a tough cookie and the Arsenal man is frustrated.
    • 19' Here come the Oranje again... they're playing it around nicely... but it ends up going back to Stekelenburg.
    • 18' The Dutch are certainly enjoying more possession at the moment... but still no way through the Japanese defence.
    • 17' linzyc07 reckons: "The Dutch have made more passes already than the English did in 90 mins. It's not that difficult!" Not sure about that, but point taken...
    • 16' No red card has ever been shown to a Japan player at the World Cup and no penalty has been awarded to Japan at the World Cup. Is that tempting fate?
    • 15' Neither side really to test the opposition keeper as yet with a quarter of an hour gone.
    • 14' A Mexican wave ripples through the stadium... The fans are certainly enjoying themselves
    • 13' Van der Vaart delivers another dead ball into the Japan area... Tulio bravely gets his head amongst the boots to clear.
    • 12' Oooh! Nagatomo ends a neat period of passing from Japan with a snap shot which flashes just wide of Stekelenburg's post!
    • 11' Kuyt attempts a spectacular overhead kick with Japan still down to 10 men! It doesn't come off though and Japan can clear their lines.
    • 10' Komano is still off the pitch being patched up... he'll be back soon enough...
    • 9' Sneijder it is who takes it! It's well-hit, but always rising and the ball sails over Kawashima's bar!
    • 8' Before it's taken Komano is stretchered off having been caught by Van Persie's boot...
    • 7' Van Persie is upended by Matsui and Netherlands have a free-kick in what can only be described as 'Van Persie territory'. Or Sneijder territory. Or indeed Van Bommel territory. So plenty of options here...
    • 6' The Dutch have failed to score in their second World Cup match at four of the six World Cups they have played with group matches.
    • 5' Van der Vaart takes it, but its easily cleared by the Japanese back line.
    • 5' Van Persie does well to get to the by-line and deliver a cross... Nagamoto heads behind for the first corner of the game!
    • 4' Another Japanese punt foward results in the Dutch throw... not the best of starts from them.
    • 3' Abe puts an up and under out of play and Netherlands build from the back once again.
    • 2' Van der Vaart wins a free-kick deep in the Dutch half and he's up and wanting to play it quickly.
    • 1' Here we go! The Netherlands get things underway at the Moses Mabhida Stadium!
    • 12:25 Here come the teams into bright sunshine in Durban! Netherlands in their usual orange strip while Japan are in their change strip of white shirts and blue shorts. Typical Dutch people
    • 12:20 Since the World Cup expanded to 32 countries in 1998, five teams have failed to progress out of the group despite winning their first match - Argentina, Costa Rica and Russia in 2002 followed by Korea Republic and Czech Republic in 2006.
    • 12:15 Japan have lost both of their matches in 2010 against European opposition. Their last win outside Japan against a European nation was nearly three years ago when they beat Switzerland 4-3 in Austria in September 2007, coming back from 2-0 down.
    • 12:10 The Dutch are unbeaten in a national record 20 matches in all competitions, the longest current run by any country in international football. They have won all five of their matches in 2010, the third longest winning streak recorded in international football this year - Egypt (seven) and the running streak of Argentina prior to their second World Cup match (six) are longer.
    • 12:05 Netherlands and Japan have met each other just once before - the Dutch winning 3-0 on 9 September 2009 in Enschede. Robin van Persie, Wesley Sneijder and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar provided the goals for the Oranje. Eljero Elia made his international debut in this match.
    • 12:00 Japan coach Takeshi Okada also kept faith with the team which had a surprise 1-0 win against Cameroon in their opening game with playmaker Keisuke Honda as sole striker up front in a defensive 4-5-1 line-up.
    • 12:00 There is no starting spot for Dutch left winger Eljero Elia who was praised for his performance during his World Cup debut in the 2-0 victory over Denmark when he came in midway through the second half. Winger Arjen Robben will start on the bench and coach Bert van Marwijk has said it is not likely that the winger, who missed the opener through a hamstring injury, will feature.
    • 11:55 So, both teams will start with the same starting line-ups that won their opening Group E matches.
    • 11:55 Today's referee is Hector Baldassi (Argentina). Let's hope he puts in a better performance than some of yesterday's officials. Defeated Germans bemoan card-happy ref
    • 11:50 Teams: Netherlands: 1-Maarten Stekelenburg; 2-Gregory van der Wiel, 3-John Heitinga, 4-Joris Mathijsen, 5-Giovanni van Bronckhorst; 7-Dirk Kuyt, 6-Mark van Bommel, 10-Wesley Sneijder, 8-Nigel de Jong, 23-Rafael van der Vaart; 9-Robin van Persie /// Japan: 21-Eiji Kawashima; 2-Yuki Abe, 22-Yuji Nakazawa, 4-Tulio, 3-Yuichi Komano; 5-Yuto Nagatomo, 16-Yoshito Okubo, 7-Yasuhito Endo, 17-Makoto Hasebe, 8-Daisuke Matsui; 18-Keisuke Honda.
    • 11:45 Netherlands meet Japan at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban with both sides looking to build on opening victories.

  • Summary

    • 90'+2 Ooh! Penalty to Japan as Nagamoto goes down in the box under the challenge of De Jong! No! The ref's actually pointing for a goal kick!
    • 90' Here it is! Oooh! Japan nearly equalise! Okazaki fires wide after a flick-on sent him through! What a chance!
    • 88' Oooh! Affelay again! So close to a Dutch second! Huntelaar lays it on for him, but it's another great save by the keeper!
    • 85' Affelay is through here! Must be! No! Kawashima is off his line in a flash to make a decent save at the substitute's feet!
    • 66' Okuba lets fly again! This time his effort from outside the box is wide of the mark, but Japan are definitely looking more dangerous now.
    • 61' Abe flicks on Endo's free-kick, but there's not enough power on it to trouble Stekelenburg.
    • 56' Ooh! Okubo does really well to get past and hold off Van Persie before striking on target! Stekelenburg makes the save!
    • 53' GOAL! SNEIJDER PUTS THE DUTCH INTO THE LEAD! What a hit from Sneijder! He absolutely cracks it from the edge of the area... the keeper can only divert it into the other corner of the net and the Dutch lead 1-0!
    • 49' Van Persie again! Ooh! Van Bommel picks him out with a long ball through... but his first-time volleyed effort is poor and rolls tamely wide of the post!
    • 47' Van Persie! Ooh! He gets his head on van Bronkhorst's cross but it's straight at the keeper!
    • 38' Matsui sends Komano free down the right hand side... there's options for Japan here! Stekelenburg is brought into his first real action of the day to deal with a crisp strike from Matsui, who teed up himself for a volley on the edge of the box!
    • 12' Oooh! Nagatomo ends a neat period of passing from Japan with a snap shot which flashes just wide of Stekelenburg's post!
    • 11:50 Teams: Netherlands: 1-Maarten Stekelenburg; 2-Gregory van der Wiel, 3-John Heitinga, 4-Joris Mathijsen, 5-Giovanni van Bronckhorst; 7-Dirk Kuyt, 6-Mark van Bommel, 10-Wesley Sneijder, 8-Nigel de Jong, 23-Rafael van der Vaart; 9-Robin van Persie /// Japan: 21-Eiji Kawashima; 2-Yuki Abe, 22-Yuji Nakazawa, 4-Tulio, 3-Yuichi Komano; 5-Yuto Nagatomo, 16-Yoshito Okubo, 7-Yasuhito Endo, 17-Makoto Hasebe, 8-Daisuke Matsui; 18-Keisuke Honda.

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