Only 11 minutes into his first World Cup game against Cameroon we saw Arjen Robben replay a familiar ploy; receiving the ball wide on the right flank he then cut in, using solely his left foot, to engineer a wickedly accurate, curling shot from outside the penalty area. I suppose my surprise was that his shot found the inside of the post instead of the back of the net (but Huntelaar tucked away the rebound nonetheless). The point is that his individual effect was immediate and, in the 13 days since his South African debut, he has provided Holland with an incisive, world class wide operator who genuinely frightens opposition teams.
It was patently obvious to see that Dunga’s pre-game talk had something to do with Robben; fouled from the outset and berated, ironically, by Robinho in the opening phases for diving I immediately began linking Brazil’s (rather poor) implementation of the anti-Robben tactic with Dunga’s own proclivities as a player. Being a defensive minded player has certainly given Dunga the ability to nullify opposition threats – their diamond midfield can mix energy, pace and experience, and the tactical schema of the team has forced many sides into ill-thought counters (Chile’s Jara was punished for leaving Robinho untended on the left in the round of 16). But a danger in addressing opposition threats is that you may become obsessed with them. What we won’t know (but may be quite justified in assuming) is if Dunga wanted Robben to know he will be given very close consideration in an attempt to rattle the winger; the reason for this is probably rooted in the mental frailty that Mourinho lost patience with at Chelsea and even van Gaal has alluded to at Bayern (he implied that Robben’s tendency to be injured was as much mental as physical).
Whether Bastos and co failed to implement Dunga’s plan or whether it was the incorrect strategy in general is now a pointless debate because the only discernable fact is that Robben was fouled and the resulting free kick ended up as a goal for the Netherlands. Equally important to individually aiding the team’s effort his inclusion has subsequently improved Sneijder’s performances. The Inter Milan central playmaker has played well in patches but it’s a difficult role to excel in when there are two deep lying midfielders protecting a back four (as has been with many teams at this World Cup, the Dutch included). Robben’s inclusion causes a minimum of two opposition players to be distracted, thus freeing up a modicum of extra space for Sneijder and – crucially for the forward players – it allows for his splendid, and veritably Dutch, ability to execute a miraculous through ball (see Cameroon, Slovakia, and one on the volley against Brazil for reference).
What’s been strange about Robben is that his talent is hardly an unknown quantity. At Chelsea he was untouchable for half of his debut season but injuries along with a questionable mentality toward the game facilitated a sharp fall in output and consistency. At Madrid he certainly had his moments but the Dutch contingent were doomed to fail in the hangover of the Galacticos’ successes. At Bayern, though, he appears to have found a club that treat him with the kind of comfort he desires as well as a less blinding media glare in comparison to the always intrusive English and forever speculative Spanish presses. Van Gaal is also a highly accomplished and tactically astute manager who has undoubtedly brought the best out of Robben at Bayern and his return to the list of football’s elite seems to have hardened his desire to play the game: ‘I’m going to fight until I drop’, were his words following injury in Holland’s final World Cup friendly against Hungary.
Brilliant footballers have the ability to do two things with equal potency; the unexpected and the largely predictable. Is it predictable that Robben will receive the ball on the right and cut inside? He should patent the move if Holland wins this World Cup because no one in the game is as decided on their route as he is. But players can’t even stop the moves they know are coming, which means the unexpected moments (against Fiorentina and Manchester United most spectacularly) are punctuated with a tangible sense of ‘you knew I could do this to you’. Being a fan of football means it’s always enjoyable to see the top talents produce and, in a World Cup that has seen relatively low-key exits of the globe’s finest, Robben is definitely standing out – along with Sneijder – as a different shade of orange.
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