So Far Behind, So Sorry....

As we sit in the US Soccer media work room on Saturday, watching Brazil-Chile in the first match of the Knockout Round, my guilt is heavy for not having been able to post anything since Manaus.

We flew overnight from Manaus, back to Sao Paulo, then I jumped on a bus at the airport, directly to Arena Corinthians for the Holland-Chile Group B finale. The next day we were out the door again to Recife, for the U.S.-Germany match prep. The combination of long flights (and waits), bus rides, bad (or mostly no) Internet at the Recife FIFA hotel, the time demands of my photo mission, and more travel (back to Sao Paulo) having given very little in the way of time to keep the blog as I would have preferred.

Sitting now until halftime of the Brazil match, when we leave for U.S. training, thought I would at least get some images, and a few comments, up from the Holland-Chile match.

First, you have to know when you go to a Holland (Netherlands, Nederlands) match you will see LOTS of orange, especially at a World Cup.

Only once I received the start sheet (roster), did I realize Dutch star Robin Van Persie was suspended from the match for accumulated yellow cards. That changed the focus of my shoot, as well as the point of attack for the group leaders. Bayern Munich star Arjen Robben is always a thorn in the side of any opponent, but against Chile, he was a dynamo, and the last thing you want to seeing when playing Holland is Robben dribbling through space towards your penalty box, then getting the ball on his lethal left foot.

Admittedly one of the world's elite players, his look and snarky demeanor makes him a  'love him, or hate him' type of player. To me, he just reminds me of Captain Jean Luc Piccard from Star Trek - The Next Generation.

Without Van Persie, however, Chile was able to hold the Dutch at bay through halftime, and into the second half. Midfielder Wesley Sneijder, was a shadow player, so much so, I was not even able to get a photo of him on the ball. He was removed in the 75th minute for Leroy Fer.

It was only a couple minutes later, Fer put Holland in front with a header off a corner. From then, the Dutch nursed their lead with three-tournament veteran Dirk Kuyt keeping things organized until being subbed out in the 89th minute.

With Chile desperate to get an equalizer, they were caught on a counter attack in the second minute of stoppage time, when Robben broke the left flank, crossing a back post ball to Memphis Depay, who had come on in the 69th minute for an ineffective Jeremain Lens.

The win guaranteed Holland a perfect nine points for the Group Stage, matching them in the Knockout Round with surprising Mexico, which tied Brazil with seven points in Group A, but was second out of the group on the goals tiebreaker.

With the return of Van Persie, the Dutch have to be one of the favored teams to reach the final from their half of the bracket. Their semifinal would be either Argentina, or of course the U.S., who still look to be a factor in the process at the time of this writing.

One final note, actor Patrick Stewart, who played Capt. Jean Luc Piccard, shares my birthday, July 13th, the day of the 2014 FIFA World Cup final. Yeah, I know, it probably means nothing, but.....

All contents of this blog, written and photographic, are copyrighted 2014, all Rights Reserved, by Perry McIntyre - Atlanta, GA.