Frank de Boer appeared after the the Dutch victory against Poland (1-2) with a satisfied feeling in front of the cameras of the NOS. Apart from the opening phase, in which Poland scored the goal, the national coach of the Dutch national team is very satisfied with the performance of his team. “Except for the first five minutes, that didn’t seem like it”, De Boer opens his interview.

De Boer has no explanation for the weak start of the the Dutch squad, in which Przemyslaw Placheta scored after a great play. “I warned them in advance that after that hassle with Robert Lewandowski they wanted to show something to the fans and the trainer”, the choice lord refers to the criticism that Lewandowski expressed on national coach Jerzy Brzeczek in advance. The Bayern Munich striker was uncertain for a long time, but he was still at the kick-off.

After the goal, things went better for the Netherlands, De Boer also saw. “Then we showed that we can do it”, says the coach. The the Dutch created a number of very big opportunities in the first half, but was unable to score. “I said in the break: if we continue like this, we will score one hundred percent. Fortunately we did.” The Netherlands greatly increased the pressure in the second half and that resulted in a penalty for Memphis Depay and a striking header from Georginio Wijnaldum.

The the Dutch themselves also lost the necessary opportunities to Poland. “There were a few moments when we were not in the right position, especially when we made the mistake ourselves, just shoved the ball into the feet of the opponent, then they come out quickly,” says De Boer, who is therefore giving away opportunities. especially with his own team. “Sometimes you lose the ball where you don’t have to lose it, you can’t play football there. But it is sport, people make mistakes in that, we too. But I have seen more positive things than negative things.”

During his time as coach of Ajax, De Boer was labeled ‘a bit wide’ in the media: the game of the coach’s teams would not offer much surprise. This is completely different for the Dutch national team, according to interviewer Jeroen Stekelenburg. De Boer says: “It just depends on the quality of the players. I was a player: I always played forward. My assumption was always forward. That’s what it’s all about. This often has to do with the quality of the players. If you play with Daley Blind and Stefan de Vrij in the back, then you know: the ball almost always goes forward. And the same in midfield with Frenkie de Jong. Then you won’t play ‘wide’. “

Rafael van der Vaart shows in the studio that he has enjoyed the interview with De Boer. “I think it’s a great interview,” said the former midfielder. “A lot of players didn’t play well, but strangely enough we saw some great attacks. Of course that also gives a good feeling, you can see that in Frank. If you create the chances, and they don’t go in, you have as a trainer. always a good feeling. “