Hungary vs. Netherlands: A Football Drama!
Ah, the beautiful game! Where the only thing more inflated than the players’ egos is the referee’s whistle! This week in our soap opera, “As the Football Turns,” we witnessed a riveting 1-1 draw between the illustrious Hungarian national team and the Dutch squad. Marco Rossi, the captain of the Hungarian ship, described the draw as a ‘bravura result,’ which, let’s be honest, sounds like it’s been plucked straight from Shakespeare’s glossary of disappointment. Bravo, well done! Yellow wristbands for all!
The Bitter Sweetness of Football
Rossi, noble captain, had a hint of bitterness about the game. He likened it to finding the last Ferrero Rocher in a box that’s mostly empty. You know it could be good, but come on, it’s not exactly a full box of delights! He was disappointed that his side, despite having a man advantage, couldn’t hold on to their lead. Like someone who can’t keep their mouth shut at a buffet, it slipped through their fingers.
The Hungarian team took an early lead thanks to a set piece, which is a fancy way of saying they kicked the ball into the goal during a slightly controlled chaos. Rossi warned they should have known that the Dutch players towered like the impressive coffee table I always wanted—tall, sturdy, and utterly unable to be ignored. He knows the drills: if you can’t outplay them, at least make them feel fatigued by defending like they’re guarding the Queen’s crown jewels.
Game Tactics and Muscles
And let’s dive into tactics, shall we? Rossi confessed he doesn’t enjoy playing defense but there comes a time in every coach’s life when they realize their side isn’t made of superhuman athletes. It’s like knowing you aren’t going to win a game of chess if you keep playing checkers. Rossi bestowed compliments on his players for ‘pulling off the plan’—not a heist, just a basic football strategy, but hey, let’s not burst his bubble!
In an unexpected twist, he found himself replacing Márton Dárdai due to a muscle problem. Dárdai must’ve made the astute mistake of thinking he was made of iron and could bend, but apparently, muscles had different ideas. In came Endre Botka, who heaped praise on like a waiter piling your plate high at a buffet. Speaking of culinary experiences, Attila Fiola played throughout the match like he was running for the last muffin on a Monday morning!
A Wish for the Future
Now, let’s take a moment to talk about Ádám Szalai. Rossi sees the makings of a future captain in him—because nothing bolsters your national pride quite like a charismatic player who can motivate everyone to try just a little harder. It’s like having a motivational poster in the locker room, only this time, he can probably kick a ball without breaking a sweat (much). If only motivational speeches could score goals!
The Dutch Perspective
Meanwhile, Ronald Koeman was sipping his tea with a half glass of optimism, reflecting on the game with the classic football phrase, “It could have been worse.” His team was a man down and still managed to steal a point like a cheeky raccoon at a picnic! The Dutch brought their best, or at least their best for a ten-man squad. Just think of them as a really well-coordinated group of zombies wanting brains but still managing to trip over their own feet!
On to Bosnia!
As Hungary gears up to face Bosnia-Herzegovina next, one can only hope they’ll come together as a united front, like a karaoke night gone right instead of a disaster waiting to happen. Victory is what they need, but let’s not forget a draw isn’t exactly a bad result—it’s merely a tantalizing appetizer before the main course. Here’s hoping the players remember their teamwork was what got them to this point—after all, football isn’t just about the fancy footwork; it’s about playing smart too!
In Conclusion…
So here we are, riding the rollercoaster of emotions, clutching our hats and possibly our stomachs. The Hungarian team has kicked the historical curse of being unable to beat the Netherlands for 40 long years. Who doesn’t love a bit of drama? Let’s just pray they remember how to score consistently before they find themselves back in the despair of football history!
Let’s keep our fingers crossed for the next match—after all, as they say, the only thing worse than losing is playing like you didn’t show up at all!
According to national team captain Marco Rossi, the 1-1 draw against the Dutch team is a bravura result, but he still feels some disappointment because the opponent was able to equalize against the Hungarian national football team in the third round of the Nations League due to a man disadvantage.
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October 12, 2024, 10:572024. October 12, 10:57
October 12, 2024, 10:592024. October 12, 10:59 am
“I would say there is a bit of bitterness in one’s mouth, because we couldn’t keep the lead with the man advantage,” Rossi answered MTI’s question about whether the glass is half empty or half full. “We got the goal from a set-piece, and we knew that we had to avoid it, because eight or nine of the Dutch players are 190 cm tall and have fantastic technical skills. That’s how it can slip in, so congratulations to the guys.
Tonight we managed to pull off the plan, in many cases they were clever. Hats off to the starters and the replacements. This attitude is needed”.
The head coach, who also has Hungarian citizenship, explained that he does not like to defend so much, but this tactic must be used against a rival of this quality, this became clear during the 5-0 defeat in Germany, when they tried to apply high pressure, but the players “ran out” of the for the second half. Rossi considered that it was very important to take advantage of the first situation in order to achieve a feat of points.
The same must be done in Bosnia. Of course, we will try to attack more than that and win there, but at least we have to achieve a draw, because that is what we need to stay at the top of the League of Nations”
– the manager referred to Monday’s meeting.
Rossi revealed that he replaced Márton Dárdai during the break due to a muscle problem. He highlighted the performances of Endre Botka, who stood in for him, and Attila Fiola, who played throughout the match. He did not think that the latter would catch up so quickly, just one month after signing for Újpest. He also praised Tamás Nikitscher, as he put it, he didn’t expect to invite the midfielder from Kecskemét either, but he liked his game, and he proved it now, when the inclusion of Ádám Nagy was “not optimal”.
Ádám Szalai is very proactive in the role we offered him. He has a great influence on those who were his teammates. Today, he speaks even more in the language of the players.
I wish him to become the national team captain one day, because he has all the skills to be an excellent coach, primarily because of his personality and charisma,” said Rossi about the role of the former team captain who joined the professional staff as a track coach.
His colleague, Ronald Koeman, saw the glass as half full after the draw, because his team managed to save a point with a man disadvantage.
“It was a difficult match, the Hungarian team fought well. Everything went so hard today. We were in such a situation that we couldn’t play in the middle of the field, because the Hungarian team was very dense there, so we should have tried more on the edges. And with a man disadvantage, we can be happy that we managed to score a point,” said the trainer managing the Dutch. “Actually, the draw is fair because we couldn’t create enough chances. We got the most out of the ten-man game, but we should be able to win these types of games”.
According to Koeman, the problem was that they had difficulty finding the attackers with the ball. This went better in the second half, Gakpo therefore became more dangerous, but the finishes were imprecise. He justified the late substitutions by saying he felt they were going to score. The Hungarians, who are in third place in the group, will be the guests of host Bosnia-Herzegovina in Zenica on Monday.
According to the goal scorer Sallai Roland, it was a matter of inches that his first shot landed on the post and not in the net, but his goal in the 32nd minute made up for it.
Let’s stay on the ground of reality, but we played against the Dutch national team.
We worked a lot and really take our hats off to the whole team, because we returned to the path from which we started and were successful against the big national teams. This is the unity that we must show in the next matches as well”, stressed Sallai, who recently moved to the Turkish Galatasaray, and then admitted that he was not in 100% shape, played with bandages and was in pain, but he was able to put this aside for the 65 minutes until was on the field. “As long as my heart takes me and the national team captain allows me, I will stay on the field!” he said.
According to the 55-times international striker, a difficult match awaits them in Zenica on Monday, where they must show the same team unity as against the Dutch.
The Hungarian team did not lose to the Netherlands for the first time after forty years and nine defeats in a row. As we reported, Roland Sallai’s goal on Friday evening gave the Hungarian national team high hopes in the Nations League match against the Netherlands, but the guests equalized in the second half, so the hoped-for miracle did not happen – since Hungary had not been able to defeat the Oranje since 1984 . In the group’s other game on Friday, Germany won 2-1 in Bosnia, leading the quartet with 7 points, ahead of the Netherlands (5), Hungary (2) and Bosnia-Herzegovina (1).