Arjen Robben made an immediate impact on his first start for the Netherlands as he scored early on to sink Slovakia. Wesley Sneijder made the game safe in the final ten minutes as the Dutch progressed to the quarter-finals, before Robert Vittek netted a penalty with the last kick of the game.
Netherlands are yet to draw any Total Football comparisons, but having maintained their 100% record, they will be keen to pick up the German habit of making the final, even if there is more to come from this side.
Few fancied Slovakia to make it out of the group stage before Vladimir Weiss oversaw a stunning 3-2 win over reigning champions Italy, but Netherlands are a different prospect entirely to the ageing Azzurri. Slovakia should have equalised when Maarten Stekelenburg denied Robert Vittek and will rue the glaring miss from their star striker, but they did not deserve to progress against a talented Dutch side.
Arjen Robben made the headlines when enjoying his first start of the tournament and scoring a lovely opening goal, but it was another gorgeous pass from Sneijder that set him free. The Inter Milan playmaker controlled the game throughout and his goal with six minutes remaining was just reward.
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