The Netherlands and Australia are playing on the World Cup group schedule on Wednesday and the game is on ESPN on TV and has a live stream from the WatchESPN website coming from Estádio Beira-Rio in Porto Alegre in Brazil and the match is a big one for the Dutch after they defeated Spain in their first Group B game and this is another big game for both sides as the soccer tournament continues.
The Netherlands has the chance to basically lock up a spot in the knockout stage with a win against Australia and the Socceroos but they will not underestimate the team from down under. Chile won over Australia in their first game and they are tied with the Netherlands in points, but the Dutch have more goals and that could come in handy at the end of the group stage.
The Dutch came out hard against Spain and despite going down 1-0 in that game, the team never wavered and they ended up scoring five goals and two of those came from Robin van Persie, including an amazing acrobatic header from way back of the goal and he put that over goalie Iker Casillas. Spain had no answers for van Persie or Arjen Robben and they each had two goals in the game and now the Dutch side is looking like another potential favorite if they get into the group stage with Brazil, Argentina and Germany.
The Dutch side has had great success in the World Cup in the past despite never winning and they have been runner up four times, including last time in 2010 in South Africa against Spain. The team now is in great position to make it into the knockout stage and Australia needs at least a point here to stay alive, while Spain has to find a way to beat Chile for any chance at making it to the next round. The rematch with Spain was a very different type of game than the 10 final, which ended 1-0 for the Spanish side and now the Dutch team has a ton of momentum coming in and they could use that to finish off this group before playing against Chile in their group finale.
The Netherlands can put themselves in a fantastic spot with points here and even a draw would be a good result, as they got three points already and likely will win out any goal differential battles they have in the group after scoring five goals against the defending champions. The Dutch side has a deep team and while Australia has some great athletes, they are not at the level of Holland.
The German team remains a favorite with Brazil and Argentina and now the Netherlands is squarely in that conversation as they try and win their first ever World Cup and this comes after the team finished as the runner up last time around to Spain, who later won the Euros as well. The Dutch side is getting some inspired play from Van Persie and he is playing for his new Man U manager in Louis Van Gaal, as he was hired this summer.
Check here for the Netherlands and Australia coverage from the World Cup in Brazil for ESPN.
