The Flying Dutchmen

Source: ESPN

 A wonderful goal by Robin van Persie at the end of the first half was the start of the deluge of goals that was only matched the rain. Holland poured on four more goals after halftime to hand Spain the worst ever loss by a defending world cup champion. An excellent outing by the Oranje exposed a suspect Spanish defense. While the end scoreline suggested easy work, it was not that way to start. 

Spain controlled the the first 45 minutes and took a 1-0 lead through a penalty converted by Xabi Alonso after Diego Costa was brought down (softly, in my opinion) by De Vrij. While Van Persie tied it before halftime, the feeling was that Spain had control of the match. They exposed the three center backs for Holland and had control of the midfield.

The second half though brought a change in attitude from Holland as the personal stayed the same. They got the ball on the right foot when Robben took on two defenders and put Holland up. That wasn't the end though as both Van Persie and Robben struck again after De Vrij scored from a cross. 

While I'm sure that any fan of Holland would prefer winning in 2010, this goes a long way towards healing that wound and puts Holland in a strong position to win a tough group.