Netherlands reach World Cup quarter-finals with dramatic comeback

Elmar Dreher, dpa 

Klaas-Jan Huntelaar was the hero for the Netherlands Sunday as the substitute sparked a remarkable turnaround to guide his country to a 2-1 win over Mexico and a place in the World Cup quarter-finals.

It was Huntelaar who headed a corner into the path of Wesley Sneijder to volley home an 88th minute equalizer and he himself converted a cool penalty four minutes into injury time after Arjen Robben was fouled by Rafael Marquez.

Mexico had been the better team for long spells and had led through a wonderful long shot from Giovani dos Santos in the 48th minute.

But the Netherlands produced a dramatic comeback in the dying minutes and earned the right to face the winner of Sunday's later tie between Costa Rica and Greece in the quarter-final in Salvador on Saturday.

"That was unbelievable. It was very difficult for us," said Netherlands captain Robin Van Persie. "The heat and the humidity made it hard, but when you are behind you have to attack."

Van Persie had a poor game by his standards and was substituted in the 74th minute - for eventual match winner Huntelaar, who was making his first appearance in the tournament.

The Mexicans had hoped to reach the quarter-finals of a World Cup held outside their own country for the first time but had lost five successive round of 16 games before this encounter.

As the Netherlands laboured, a 48th minute strike from dos Santos beat the diving Jasper Cillessen for pace and accuracy and gave them hope this dismal record would come to an end.

Charismatic coach Miguel Herrera, looking unruffled in the heat despite wearing a suit and tie, exploded on the touchline in his trademark celebration.

Given the display of the Netherlands to this point, he must have felt the goal could be enough to see his team into the next round.

But that counted without the Netherlands refusing to give up. Man of the man Guillermo Ochoa made an instinctive save to deny Stefan de Vrij from a corner kick, turning the ball onto the post, before he also denied Robben as the Dutch pressure increased.

When Sneijder levelled two minutes from the end, extra-time seemed certain until the controversial decision by referee Pedro Proenca to award a penalty when Robben tumbled under minimal contact.

Huntelaar, who had missed his last three penalties for his club Schalke, stayed cool to send Ochoa the wrong way from 12 yards and win the game.

"I think we went wrong from the first goal, we gave a rebound, the team falls too far back. Robben dove three times, and we were playing against the referee all the time," Herrera said.

While there was debate over the penalty which was given, the referee mistakenly waved play on in first half injury time when Robben was fouled by Marquez.

That came at the end of a period which Mexico controlled. Hector Herrera guided a shot just wide before Jasper Cillessen saved from Carlos Salcido, brought into midfield for the suspended Jose Vazquez, and blocked from dos Santos at a tight angle.

During a remarkable journey through the group stage, which started with a 5-1 thrashing of reigning champions Spain, it seemed possible the Netherlands could achieve great things in Brazil.

But in the heat and humidity of Fortaleza, the pace which characterized their earlier matches was absent.

For long spells the Netherlands looked more like reluctant fathers dragged out to play in the searing midday sun by their enthusiastic children than a top side chasing a quarter-final berth at the World Cup.

When they did have possession, it was retained with the sole ambition of conserving energy rather than to probe the Mexican defence for gaps.

But with their backs to the wall, the Netherlands responded when they had to and in the best possible fashion. Their dream continues while Mexico rue what might have been.