Robben: "Dream scenario is still intact"
Monday, 5 July 2010
His World Cup seemed
in tatters when he pulled a hamstring in a friendly
against Hungary, a week before the start of the tournament.
Oranje traveled to South Africa without Arjen Robben,
who went through an intensified rehab program to get
fit in record time and be of value in a later stage.
It worked and now a fully fit Robben is on his way to
winning the World Cup.
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| Arjan Robben is hoping for a final
against Germany and against his team mates of Bayern
Munich |
But no more looking
back. The match against Hungary, the backheel, his recovery
program with Dick van Toorn and the individual training
sessions in South Africa: it's all in the past for the
Bayern Munich forward.
"At a certain
point you close that book," he tells FCUpdate.nl.
"Now I'm only looking forward, to the semifinal
against Uruguay. Against Cameroon and Slovakia I wasn't
fully free in my head. I am now. I believe my form is
good. Against Brazil I wasn't decisive for the team,
but I feel I played a decent second half. On top it
was my first full 90 minutes."
His hamstring troubles
aren't fully gone yet though. "During the game
against Brazil it bothered me sometimes. I felt a pain
and thought it was going wrong. But I was able to continue
and the pain subsided. There was little or no reaction
the day after the match."
He is training differently
than he was during the first weeks of the World Cup.
"When I had first arrived here and I was working
towards the games against I really wanted to test myself
in training. I trained hard, to make sure my hamstring
was okay. Now I take it easy; I don't have to test myself
any longer. Rest and recovery is more important now."
When he was working
hard at his recovery in the clinic of Dick van Toorn
in order to be able to play at this World Cup he dreamed
of a perfect World Cup for Holland. "And that dream
scenario is still intact," Robben says with a smile.
"It would have been hard to believe had someone
told me in advance it would be this way. But we're not
there yet huh. We're on a mission, and that is to win
the World Cup. That is our goal."
A final against Germany
could make the dream scenario complete. The Germans
play Spain in the other semifinal on Wednesday, and
Robben wishes them all the best. "It's very impressive
what they have achieved this tournament. Before the
tournament I hadn't expected them to get this far, but
even after the first game against Australia you could
see that they had a good team. Of course it would be
great to play the final against Germany. But Spain is
fine as well. As long as we are in it."
Uruguay and then Spain
of Germany: the gold that he dreamed of is within reach.
And for that everything else has to budge. Asked whether
he'd agree if a dive of himself would get them the World
Cup he smiles. "Let's hope we don't need that.
But anything is allowed to win the World Cup. You could
see that when Suarez used his hands to prevent Ghana
from scoring. It's not about the Fair Play Cup now.
This is about the World Cup."
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