Never mind parking the bus – someone has taken the Dutch team’s van.
With captain Robin van Persie suspended for Monday’s decisive Group B game with Chile in San Paolo, for the first time in nearly 20 years, the Netherlands started without a single played named ‘van’ on the pitch.
The last time this happened was a 1996 European Championships warm-up friendly against China, which they won 2-0.
Holland have reached the World Cup final three times – 1974, 1978 and 2010 – and all three teams have featured at least one Van (Willem van Hanegem in 1974, Rene and Willy van der Kerkhof in 1978 and Gregory van der Wiel and van Persie in 2010).
Their only major tournament win was the 1988 European Championships, where Marco van Basten scored one of the most memorable volleys in history as they beat the Soviet Union.
Other vans who have played a major role for the Dutch in recent years include goalkeeper Edwin van der Saar, midfielder Giovanni van Bronckhorst and striker Ruud van Nistelrooy.
But vans are thin on the ground in the 2014 Dutch squad, and that break in continuity is down to one man. Coach Louis, er, van Gaal.
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