World Cup
Van 't Schip: Koeman should stick with Brobbey vs Tunisia
John van 't Schip, assisting Ronald Koeman at the 2022 World Cup, has weighed in on the Netherlands' final group-stage fixture against Tunisia tonight at 1.00 a.m. CET. His advice for Oranje’s head coach: prioritise rhythm and fitness over rotation.
Van 't Schip served as Marco van Basten’s assistant at the 2006 and 2008 Dutch national teams, later coaching Greece, Armenia and Ajax in an interim capacity. He reflected on past decisions to rest players in dead-rubber group matches, including a 0-0 draw with Argentina in 2006 and a 2-0 win over Romania in 2008.
“That’s what we did and we still produced decent results,” he said. “In 2006 we drew 0-0 with Argentina, in 2008 we beat Romania 2-0.”
He added: “Whether that was the right call in hindsight is hard to say. On both occasions we were eliminated in the first knockout game. Before the 2008 quarter-final we looked at each other and said: if we show this level tomorrow, beating Russia won’t be a problem. That didn’t quite work out.”
Rotation breaks some players’ rhythm but can also provide rest after a long season and opportunities for squad members who rarely play. “You disrupt the rhythm of certain players, but after such a long season it’s sometimes nice to get some rest and give others a chance,” he said.
Netherlands set to clinch World Cup knockout spot vs Tunisia
“You also want to keep everyone involved during the tournament.” Van 't Schip suggested Koeman may still rotate but faces pressure from players eager to play every minute. Fitness levels and medical staff input will dictate decisions. He cited 2008 examples where Arjen Robben and Robin van Persie were not fully fit and used the final group game to regain match sharpness. “At the same time, you want to top the group here because that means more rest,” he said. “I wouldn’t even look at potential opponents; just pick the window that gives the squad the most recovery time. From that angle, Koeman might be best served keeping his strongest XI against Tunisia.” He backed Brian Brobbey to lead the line after his goals against Sweden, saying: “Otherwise you make life difficult for yourself as a coach. I have to say Brobbey looked really good. He showed depth in his game and helped teammates around him—something we didn’t see in the first match against Japan when Donyell Malen was still playing.” “Malen has proved he’s super fit and sharp, even if he hasn’t scored yet for Oranje. He can play multiple positions—striker, right wing, left wing, maybe even as a false 10. I’d play him.” Koeman will hold a press conference on Wednesday evening ahead of the clash in Kansas City. The match kicks off at 1.00 a.m. CET and is live on .nl, the app, NPO 1 and NPO Radio 1, with audio description on NPO 1 extra (channel 81) and NPO Start for blind and partially sighted viewers.