Four years ago, on the 11th of July at Johannesburg, South Africa, Andrés Iniesta made a crucial goal four mintues from the end of the extra time to give Spain a 1-0 lead over Netherlands enroute to their first ever World Cup title.
This summer, the Dutch can avenge that heartbreaking loss to the Spaniards when their teams clash again on June 13 at Arena Fonte Nova in Salvador, Brazil for their first game in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Their previous World Cup final meeting wasn't particularly a classic, but was intensely competetive, and full of drama and controversy--yellow cards were flying everywhere! Just a day after the game, Johan Cruyff, a former Dutch footballer and widely regarded as one of the best football players in history, went to the media and openly attacked the Dutch National team El Periódico de Catalunya for playing "in a very dirty fashion," describing their performance as "ugly," "vulgar," and "anti-football."
The Dutch team, however, thought the game was biased, with a few players like Robben and Van Persie accusing the referee of favoring the Spaniards--the Dutch were handed with nine yellow cards in contrast to Spain's five.
The 2010 World Cup, however, has long past and a lot of things have happened between the two clubs since then. Netherlands is currently in a difficult spot with the departure of their manager Louis van Gaal to Manchester United. Spain, on the other hand, looks like they're reigning, defending EUFA and World Cup champions that they are. Spain's confidence on their match with Netherlands is especially intriguing--not a good sign for the Dutch!
"What fortune! It is up to us to be very good from the first day. The Dutch will demand the best from us. From there, it could all depend on us and our mental preparation," Vicent del Bosque, Spain's manager, said on ESPNFC.com when the draw was made.
Still, a rematch in the previous World Cup final between Spain and Netherlands in the first round of the 2014 FIFA World Cup is very exciting, especially with the quality and potential of both teams and the controversy that surrounded their previous World Cup finals game. It definitely is going to be a fun, heart-stopping, must-see game for football fans all over the world!
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