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Koeman criticized his players for wasting chances
Dutch national team coach Ronald Koeman said the Windmills’ 1-0 friendly loss at home to Algeria yesterday, Wednesday, was a wake-up call for the team to travel to the United States to begin their 2026 World Cup campaign.
“I absolutely hate losing and we should have won this game. In such encounters we have to win at home because our position in the table dictates it,” Koeman commented with obvious disappointment.
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Koeman noted that the Netherlands, ranked eighth in the world, imposed their control in the first 25 minutes and created several chances, but could not capitalize on them.
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The former coach of “Barcelona” added: “When you don’t decide the game in the first 25 minutes, you find yourself in the face. If you have four or five clear opportunities, you have to convert them into goals.”
The Dutch coach added: “Even if you don’t score, it shouldn’t be a problem. But then we made it difficult for ourselves and sometimes we lacked the brutality and we were just too soft.”
When asked if losing in the pre-season was better than losing in the World Cup, Koeman replied: “No, winning always gives a positive feeling, but losing is a bad thing. There is no need to panic now, but we need to review all the details. What happened can be described as an alarm.”
The Netherlands will play Japan, Sweden and Tunisia in Group 6 of the World Cup.
