Spain Crushed By Rampant Dutch

The defending World Cup champion - Spain was handed a humiliating 5 - 1 defeat by the Netherlands in their first Group D match in Brazil 2014. It was the worst defeat that any defending champion has suffered in a world Cup opening game.

Spain took the lead when Xavi Alonzo scored through the penalty they got, when Diego Costa, was brought down in the box.

Robin van Persie equalized for the Dutch, before the half time, through an amazing header over Iker Casillas, who appeared surprised to see the ball in his net. Read also: africanfootie.blogspot.com

The winning Dutch duo - Robben and Van Persie

But in the second half, the Dutch changed gear and took control of the game and dominated the match in every department.

The captain Van Persie and Arjan Robben, both scored twice each, with Stefan de Vrij scoring one to complete the humiliation.

It was the shock of the tournament so far. Nobody could have rightly predicted such a crushing defeat, of the defending champion, not even a die-hard Dutch fan.

The Spanish team was a shadow of themselves. None of their players really played exceptionally.

The whole Dutch team (De Oranje) played an amazingly tantalizing game. It was a sweet revenge for losing the 2010 World Cup final 1 - 0 to Spain in South Africa, through an Andreas Iniesta lone goal.

After the Dutch finished dismantling the Spanish team, the captain and goalkeeper, Iker Casillas whose two mistakes resulted in goals said, that he wasn't at his best and claimed that it was his fault for their massive defeat.

''I wasn't at the level I needed to be. I have to accept all criticism,'' he said.

''I didn't do things like I should have, especially to start a World Cup. It wasn't one of my best games,'' he added.

His coach, Vincente del Bosque refused to blame any single player for their poor performance, rather he said that the defeat was a weakness of the whole squad.

''When a team loses a match, it's not just the performance of one single player, it's a weakness in the total squad,'' the successful coach said.
Read also: africanfootie.blogspot.com