Jun 15 2008, 02:09 PM
QUOTE(verx @ Jun 14 2008, 09:19 PM)
By saying they are a luxury aren't you are dismissing the position?
When you say put anyone offensive minded upfront aren't they strikers as well?
A striker doesn't have to be an old fashioned centre forward only u know.
And I didn't say RVN was the most important man; I said he was an important element of the team. And he didn't just do what any decent striker would do. The French defenders could hardly get the ball off him. Compare that with Luca Toni's performance for Italy who did OK but was a step below what RVN showed for Holland.
I have to agree with what Verx said; Ruud played an effective game against the French.When you say put anyone offensive minded upfront aren't they strikers as well?
A striker doesn't have to be an old fashioned centre forward only u know.
And I didn't say RVN was the most important man; I said he was an important element of the team. And he didn't just do what any decent striker would do. The French defenders could hardly get the ball off him. Compare that with Luca Toni's performance for Italy who did OK but was a step below what RVN showed for Holland.
IMO, he held the forward line well; anticipated passes from de Jong, Engelaar and VDV, and shielded the ball superbly against (both!!) DMs, Toulalan and Makelele. You can see that he was lying deep for most of the time, and he provided the main focal point for the Dutch midfield to pass to.
Gotten hold of the ball, he then distributed the balls well back to Kuyt or Sneijder to run against French fullbacks. However, Kuyt is not exactly the phantom winger, so van Basten did well by putting on (two wingers!!) Robben and van Persie. By then, Oranje's offense was in free flow. Rest was history
Even Ruud himself was quoted as 'very satisfied with his non-scoring performance' in an article from Soccernet.
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