Dutch national coach Ronald Koeman hesitates to make bold predictions about his team’s chances at the World Cup, but expressed his confidence on Tuesday in the preparation for a warm-up match against Algeria.
The Netherlands were semi-finalists at the last European Championship and Koeman said he had a «better feeling» about this month’s tournament in Canada, Mexico and the US than the European Championship in Germany two years ago.
«But what does ‘better’ mean? At the last tournament we were missing players due to injuries,» he told a press conference ahead of Wednesday’s match in Rotterdam.
«It looks like we will have everyone fully fit this time, so that is a difference. But we have to prove whether we are actually better.»
Koeman said making predictions was a dangerous task.
«You can never get it right. When you say we are going to become world champions, people ask what that is based on,» he said.
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«If you say you are outsiders, people say you have no confidence. I have a lot of confidence in this team, but there are also other countries with a lot of quality.»
«You have to recognize that and be realistic about it. That doesn’t mean I don’t believe we can’t go far. I absolutely do.»
The Netherlands will compete against Japan, Sweden and Tunisia in World Cup Group F.
Published on June 2, 2026
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