The Netherlands Smack Chile, Win Group B, Appear Unstoppable
The Netherlands played Chile today in the deciding match to see which country would finish atop Group B. The Netherlands demolished Spain in the opener, and dispatched Australia, but Chile had also won both of their matches, and it was reasonable to assume that the Dutch, who were without the suspended Robin van Persie, would maybe have a rough day. Nope.
The two sides were deadlocked for a while, but in the 77th minute, Daryl Janmaat lofted in a ball to the box after receiving a short corner. Leroy Fer, who'd just come on as a substitute, was completely unmarked, so he elevated and headed the cross just inside the post for the goal on his first touch.
In stoppage time 15 minutes later, Arjen Robben capped another great performance. He ran past the entire defense, as he's done in each World Cup match, and slotted a ball across the six to Memphis Depay for the easy tap in.
Chile are great, and might have a run in them this tournament yet, but it's more than a little alarming how Louis van Gaal has taken this largely unheralded band of players and transformed them into a side to be feared by every single team in the World Cup. They just won't stop scoring.
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