Real Dutchmen seek solace with Holland
ROTTERDAM - For Real Madrid's Dutch trio Arjen Robben, Rafael van der Vaart and Klaas Jan Huntelaar the next two World Cup 2010 qualifying matches present a perfect opportunity to end a miserable season on a high.
Netherlands, top of Group Nine with 15 points from five matches, travel to Iceland on Saturday before hosting Norway and need one more win to qualify for next year's World Cup finals in South Africa.
Real Madrid lost their last five league matches of the season and Robben, Van der Vaart and Huntelaar are uncertain about their futures in the Spanish capital following the election of president Florentino Perez.
"Only when the club will buy three of four new wingers, something will change for me, but that won't happen easily and it has no use to think about because you don't have any influence on the club's policy," Robben told reporters.
"Now it just would be nice to win a match again, because then the feeling would be better when I go on holiday."
Playmaker Van der Vaart hardly played after Juande Ramos took over from Bernd Schuster but is still confident his future will be in Madrid.
"Even when the new coach doesn't include me in his future plans, I will stay and fight to succeed at this club," he said.
Coach Bert van Marwijk said he was confident his players would not be distracted.
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"We have become a more stabile team in which players are more able to translate the plans of the technical staff on the pitch" Van Marwijk told reporters.
"We are defending more and more with are whole team, like the best club team in the world Barcelona is doing, and that makes a team less vulnerable," he added.
Probable team: Maarten Stekelenburg; John Heitinga, Andre Ooijer, Joris Mathijsen, Giovanni van Bronckhorst; Dirk Kuyt, Mark van Bommel, Robin van Persie, Nigel de Jong, Arjen Robben; Klaas Jan Huntelaar.
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