alamo50
11-21-2005, 10:44 AM
Associated Press
Posted: 3 days ago
UTRECHT, Netherlands (AP) - Four Dutch coaches will be looking to win the World Cup for the first time next year, and only one of them will be leading the Netherlands.
Marco Van Basten, Guus Hiddink, Leo Beenhakker and Dick Advocaat have all had turns coaching the Netherlands, and all will be coaching different teams at the tournament in Germany.
Van Basten, the current Netherlands coach, is expected to have the best chance to win it.
Hiddink has been a proven winner on soccer's biggest stage, however. He led South Korea to the semifinals four years ago and took the Netherlands to last four in 1998. He'll be coaching Australia this time.
The biggest surprise of the four may be Beenhakker, who will coach Trinidad and Tobago in Germany.
The former Real Madrid and Ajax coach led the Netherlands for only six matches, but he helped Rinus Michels lead the team to its only major international title - the 1998 European Championship.
"This is so satisfying, to take a small soccer country from nothing and build it up from zero. I flipped my lid when the final whistle blew," Beenhakker said.
Both Hiddink and Beenhakker clinched their spots in the 32-team finals on Saturday, both winning their final playoff games 1-0.
Australia then went to penalty kicks to beat Uruguay 4-2 after a 1-1 aggregate draw, while Trinidad downed Bahrain 2-1 on aggregate. Australia will be in the finals for the first time since 1974, while Trinidad will be making its debut.
"All right! Here comes another great summer," Hiddink told Dutch daily De Telegraaf.
Dutch fans are almost as happy about Australia, Trinidad and South Korea as they are about their own team.
The Australia match was broadcast live on television in the Netherlands and the station flashed "Hiddink pulls it off again" after the win.
Most believe the Netherlands will go furthest in the tournament, but Dutch fan Dick Malaba thinks Hiddink is the best coach.
"Van Basten is very lucky," Malaba said. "I hope the Netherlands can play Australia and Van Basten's weaknesses will be exposed."
At the last World Cup, four French coaches led teams, including Roger Lemerre with France, Henri Michel with Tunisia, Bruno Metsu with Senegal and Philippe Troussier with Japan.
Link (http://msn.foxsports.com/soccer/story/5092300)
:smokin
Posted: 3 days ago
UTRECHT, Netherlands (AP) - Four Dutch coaches will be looking to win the World Cup for the first time next year, and only one of them will be leading the Netherlands.
Marco Van Basten, Guus Hiddink, Leo Beenhakker and Dick Advocaat have all had turns coaching the Netherlands, and all will be coaching different teams at the tournament in Germany.
Van Basten, the current Netherlands coach, is expected to have the best chance to win it.
Hiddink has been a proven winner on soccer's biggest stage, however. He led South Korea to the semifinals four years ago and took the Netherlands to last four in 1998. He'll be coaching Australia this time.
The biggest surprise of the four may be Beenhakker, who will coach Trinidad and Tobago in Germany.
The former Real Madrid and Ajax coach led the Netherlands for only six matches, but he helped Rinus Michels lead the team to its only major international title - the 1998 European Championship.
"This is so satisfying, to take a small soccer country from nothing and build it up from zero. I flipped my lid when the final whistle blew," Beenhakker said.
Both Hiddink and Beenhakker clinched their spots in the 32-team finals on Saturday, both winning their final playoff games 1-0.
Australia then went to penalty kicks to beat Uruguay 4-2 after a 1-1 aggregate draw, while Trinidad downed Bahrain 2-1 on aggregate. Australia will be in the finals for the first time since 1974, while Trinidad will be making its debut.
"All right! Here comes another great summer," Hiddink told Dutch daily De Telegraaf.
Dutch fans are almost as happy about Australia, Trinidad and South Korea as they are about their own team.
The Australia match was broadcast live on television in the Netherlands and the station flashed "Hiddink pulls it off again" after the win.
Most believe the Netherlands will go furthest in the tournament, but Dutch fan Dick Malaba thinks Hiddink is the best coach.
"Van Basten is very lucky," Malaba said. "I hope the Netherlands can play Australia and Van Basten's weaknesses will be exposed."
At the last World Cup, four French coaches led teams, including Roger Lemerre with France, Henri Michel with Tunisia, Bruno Metsu with Senegal and Philippe Troussier with Japan.
Link (http://msn.foxsports.com/soccer/story/5092300)
:smokin