Holland snatched victory after late goals from Wesley Sneijder and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar
Pictures: the best images from the Estádio CastelãoFirst official 'cooling break' taken at World Cup7.01pm BST
Well, well, on march the Dutch and on marches this glorious World Cup with more ups and downs than a rollercoaster. They looked like they would be down and out once that Dos Santos strike hit the back of the net but in fact it shocked them into life. They were the better team from then on and Robben's running proved decisive once more. They take on either Greece or Costa Rica in the quarter-finals. Thanks for all the emails, tweets and opinions. Bye!
6.57pm BST
Football, bloody hell!
6.56pm BST
90 + 5 mins Márquez and Guardado were both given yellow cards during all the going-ons around the penalty decision. Not that they will matter.
6.55pm BST
90 + 4 mins We all saw that coming, right?
6.53pm BST
He does not miss, tucking the ball in the bottom left corner. That was very calm and very composed unlike his celebration (see below).
6.52pm BST
90 + 2 mins Huntelaar and Robben combine on the right. The latter weaves his way into the box before being taken down by a lazy tackle from Márquez, who lands his hoof on the Dutchman's foot. Definitely a penalty.
6.50pm BST
90 mins There will be six more minutes and surely extra-time after that.
6.49pm BST
Holland got their 10th corner of the game. Robben fired it to the back stick. Huntelaar headed it down for Sneijder and from about 16 yards out he rifled the ball in the bottom corner of the net.
6.47pm BST
Heartbreak for Mexico! Hope for Holland!
6.46pm BST
84 mins Kuyt wins a corner on the right. Robben takes and aims it in the general direction of Vlaar. Aguilar clears it but it doesn't go far. It is fired right back in the box and onto the toe of Huntelaar. He looks to hook it into the goal but Ochoa races off his line to stop him in his tracks. It was a superb save but even if Huntelaar had scored, it wouldn't have counted. He was offside.
6.43pm BST
82 mins Rodríguez holds off Robben and somehow the referee deems this a foul and awards Holland a free-kick. They needed that. Mexico had dominated possession since the restart and Holland could not get a kick of it.
6.41pm BST
81 mins "Dirk Kuyt is Status Quo" says Matt Dony. "You know exactly what you're going to get, but he just keeps going, even as the world he inhabits changes beyond all recognition. Endearingly popular, even though most would never admit it. The anti-hipster footballer."
6.40pm BST
79 mins And we are back with a decent effort from Salcido. He bundles his way past a few Dutch defenders and on the edge of the box, he hits an effort just wide of Cillessen's goal.
6.38pm BST
78 mins We are back.
6.38pm BST
77 mins More on Kuyt.
@ianmccourt Dirk Kuyt is Yoko Ono. Joined previously successful combo and is still around, misunderstood, but seemingly indestructible.
6.37pm BST
76 mins We have our second water break and we have had some subs. Van Persie is replaced by Huntelaar and Hernández comes on for Peralta.
6.36pm BST
74 mins Kuyt launches a long ball over the top for Robben to run on to. Unsurprisingly, he doesn't get to it. But he soon has a chance to make up for that. He gets the ball at his feet and off he zooms. Within seconds he is the Mexican box, evading a challenge from Márquez and firing at Ochoa's near post. The keeper does well to save it and Holland have a corner. Vlaar heads that over.
6.32pm BST
72 mins "Kuyt's more of a Kasabian," says my colleague Dan Lucas. "Ostensibly talentless, as grey and ugly as they come, yet here with 100 caps/a million album sales and stealing the headline slot on the biggest stage of all. Has there ever been a more inexplicably successful act?"
6.31pm BST
70 mins Aguilar gets industrial on Memphis and gets a yellow card as his reward. That means he will miss the next game should Mexico progress.
6.29pm BST
68 mins The referee has pointed for a goalkick but he was almost pointing to the penalty spot. Had he done so, it would have been a real shame. Let me explain why. Robben had the ball wide on the right. He skipped his way into the Mexico box and then stumbled (i.e threw himself) over the leg of Layún and onto the ground. Robben should have been booked for that.
6.27pm BST
67 mins "If Dirk Kuyt were indeed Prince," says Douglas Davies, "he'd fire all his teammates, play every position himself with the help of 10 studio overdubs, and change his name to an unpronounceable symbol."
6.26pm BST
65 mins Some housekeeping. A moment or two ago, Dos Santos was swapped for Aquino.
6.25pm BST
64 mins Another corner to Holland. (It's been all Holland since that goal.) It comes in, it goes out. The second ball drops to Blind once more. His effort is wide once more.
6.23pm BST
62 mins "Dirk Kuyt is surely Nickelback" says James Gerard. "Ostentatiously earnest but low on talent, horrible to watch, and pretty horrible to listen to as well."
6.22pm BST
61 mins Meanwhile, this is more like it from Holland. They break with speed on the counter via Robben. He makes it to the edge of the box where he slips the ball to Sneijder whose effort on goal is deflected for a corner. Herrera flicks it away.
6.21pm BST
60 mins Apparently, some fan has put his house up for sale in an effort to raise some dosh to keep Ochoa at Ajaccio.
6.18pm BST
58 mins Reyes puts an Martins Indi cross out for a corner. Robben swings it in and it lands at the feet from De Vrij. From a few yards out it should be a goal but Ochoa, the hero against Brazil, pulls off a magnificent reaction save tipping the ball onto the post and keeping his side in the lead.
6.16pm BST
56 mins On comes Memphis. Off goes Verhaegh.
6.14pm BST
54 mins Corner to Holland. Robben takes it. Peralta deals with it. He aims a second one to the near post. It is shown the door of the box but lands at the feet of Blind. His speculative effort goes wide.
6.13pm BST
53 mins ""Cooling breaks" will mean an additional 10-12 min. of ads per game," maths Jeff B. "The American networks finally get what they always wanted and FIFA gets more money to "support football globally". Genius." Sneijder, meanwhile, has lashed a free-kick into a Mexican wall.
6.11pm BST
51 mins That was superb technique from Dos Santos and given how listless the Dutch have been in this match, they are going to find it hard to get back into this game.
6.10pm BST
There have been some great goals in this World Cup and this is one of them. A long ball is lumped up from Aguilar. It hits the head of Vlaar and Dos Santos takes it down on his chest. He then shows his strength and holds off Blind and a couple of orange-clad players before blasting the ball past Cillessen with a half-volley from distance.
6.08pm BST
No more than they deserved.
6.08pm BST
48 mins Mexico attack down the left. Reyes and Peralta combine on the edge of the box but the Dutch manage to bundle it clear.
6.06pm BST
46 mins Weather report: the highest temperature at pitch side during the first half was 38 degrees! And it is getting hotter we are told. This does not bode well for the Dutch who really suffered under the sun in the first half.
6.05pm BST
45 mins We are back. One sub to tell you about. Reyes on for the injured Moreno.
5.57pm BST
And more Dirk Kuyt analogies. This time from Mike Wilner:
Dirk Kuyt as James Brown? No thanks. How about Dirk Kuyt as Prince. Undeniably talented, not particularly appreciated, and nowhere near as popular with the public as he thinks he is.
5.55pm BST
The water break thing has really raised a stink. Here's the thoughts of Tanay Padhi.
Did FIFA forget to sell the sponsorship rights to the cooling break? How come it isn't "The Official FIFA World Cup in Brazil cooling break brought to you by Gatorade?" Opportunity missed.
5.50pm BST
Nothing more to report here folks, except that Moreno injured himself taking down Robben and had to be carried off on a stretcher. Back in a few minutes.
5.49pm BST
45 + 2 mins Mexico tiki-taka their way around the Dutch half and then in their own half. It is there that Márquez makes what could have been a massive mistake. He misses a pass and allows it to go to Van Persie. The Dutch striker breaks forward and sees Robben on his left and Van Persie looks to curl the ball around the defence and into the path of his team-mate. Robben gets to the ball but is almost immediately taken right out of it by Márquez and Moreno. That should have been a penalty.
5.45pm BST
45 mins There will be four minutes of added time. A lot of Dutch players look exhausted already.
5.44pm BST
43 mins Martins Indi gives Dos Santos a kicking when he is down. Instead of lamping one in, Mexico play the free-kick short. The Dutch soon clear the danger.
5.42pm BST
41 mins Rodríguez diverts away a ball that Van Persie was about to shoot home. Corner to Holland. They play it short to Robben who then plays it long to the back post. Too long, in fact. The ball goes out for a goalkick.
5.40pm BST
39 mins Guardado holds off the challenge of Wijnaldum and pokes the ball down the right wing for Aguilar to run on to. Kuyt is with him all the way, however, and a potentially dangerous break goes out for goalkick.
5.38pm BST
37 mins Speaking of Layún. He has just broke down the left wing once more and once more done so with ease. His chip to the back post has a touch too much loft and there is nothing the Mexican attackers can do with it.
5.36pm BST
36 mins "Leftist? You like Layún?" honks Marten Walters.
5.35pm BST
35 mins We are back.
5.34pm BST
34 mins Holland and Van Gaal will be glad of that. It gives them a break from the Mexican pressure and allows them to regroup. They have been poor so far.
5.32pm BST
32 mins The Dutch enjoy a rare spell of possession, knocking it from side to side in the Mexico half without looking dangerous. Mexico force them back and back and eventually Holland lose possession. The referee then does the time out thing with hands and we have the first OFFICIAL water break of the World Cup! This is history we are witnessing people. History!
5.30pm BST
30 mins "Guardian was, is and will always be full of Leftists," says an email that has just been plonked in my inbox. Not sure what is has to do with the match. Do you? Answers please to the usual address.
5.28pm BST
28 mins And just as I type all that, a long ball into the box finds Van Persie. This could be it. Actually, no it can't. The Manchester United striker takes it down but fails to get the ball to fall into his stride and he balloons his effort well wide.
5.27pm BST
26 mins Mexico have been the far better side so far. They are pulling Holland apart, stretching the play from side to side and generally looking a lot more dangerous than the Dutch. Van Persie, Robben and Sneijder who has not been great throughout this tournament have not had a sniff.
5.25pm BST
24 mins The corner lands in the middle of the box and is directed out of play by Van Persie's head. The referee, however, fails to spot this and Holland have possession again.
5.24pm BST
23 mins Mexico get out their tools and do some building outside the Holland box. It ends with a decent strike from Salcido that forces Cillessen into giving away a corner.
5.22pm BST
20 mins Mexico have just had a corner, their first of the game. Nada came of it, except for a kick in the face for Herrera from Vlaar and/or Verhaegh. (Just saw a replay of this incident: probably should have been a penalty.)
5.20pm BST
17 mins And that should have been the first goal of the match. A short diagonal ball is fired with pace to the back post. Once there, it is taken it down by Dos Santos who knocks it back Peralta. He dallied but eventually got the ball to Herrera. It gets tangled under his feet but Herrera manages to get a shot away. He watches in agony as it dribbles inches past the wrong side of the post.
5.16pm BST
15 mins Some pictures to keep you amused for a minute or two.
5.15pm BST
13 mins Layún, who has been Mexico's best player so far, not just in this match but possibility also in the entire World Cup, gets the ball wide on the left. He goes one on one with Verhaegh and wins the contest easily, knocking the ball around him and running on to it. Once reunited with the spherical object, he lashes it across the box in a most dangerous manner but no Mexican player can get their baby toe on it.
5.11pm BST
11 mins "Dirk Kuyt should be compared with James Brown, as he is the hardest working man in football," reckons Marie Meyer. "Delighted to see him on the pitch. But it hasn't been much of a World Cup for Kop Idols present and past, so I fear there is a ballooning over the bar from 6 yards in his future."
5.10pm BST
10 mins That's a big loss for Holland.
5.10pm BST
9 mins What the Hell? De Jong has just gone off and been replaced by Martins Indi. No explanation has been given. He certainly did not look injured and he certainly didn't look happy.
De Jong forced off, Martins indi comes in. Blind will switch to midfield.
5.08pm BST
8 mins Moreno I think sets Aguilar through on goal but Cillessen is quick of his line and gets to the ball first. That should be that but he makes an absolute hash of his clearance, slicing it like a butcher with a big piece of meat. Luckily for him, it lands at the feet of one of his defenders.
5.06pm BST
6 mins It really does.
This Holland v Mexico game has a USA'94 hue to it.
5.05pm BST
5 mins Mexico get their attack on again and again its via Layún. He cuts inside form the left and shapes to shoot. His effort goes well wide of Cillessen's post.
5.03pm BST
3mins Van Persie gets the ball at his feet once again. This time, however, he is further inside the Mexican half. He looks to dissect the Mexican defence and put Robben through on goal but the pass is just a touch overhit and Ochoa boots it clear.
5.02pm BST
2 mins Holland get an early taste of possession. Van Persie picks the ball up inside the centre circle and spreads the ball out to Kuyt the crowd, mostly Mexican, booo the hell out of him. Nothing more to report so far except for Layún belting one over the bar from 30 yards.
5.00pm BST
1 min Here we go! Holland are in their brilliant orange. Mexico are in their excellent green. The Mexicans get us going. They start doing the right, left thing.
4.57pm BST
Right. All the chat is done and the players are on the pitch. The sun is shining hard. The sweat is already rolling down the brows of the players. The anthems are yoddled by either side and with a brisk shake of the hands, off they go to line up in their respective formations. Incidentally, if we are judging this game on who sings the anthem better and if there is one thing we have learned from this World Cup it is that teams who sing louder always win then Mexico will be chirpy come full time.
4.52pm BST
Martin O'Neill has just compared himself to Louis van Gaal. Can you tell him?
4.49pm BST
It's 29 degrees and the humidity stands at 68% in the Estádio Castelão. All that means there will be designated water breaks somewhere around the 30-minute mark. Meanwhile, Peter Crosby has been in touch. "Congrats on his 100th cap, but when he first got my attention, Dirk Kuyt was a prolific striker. He moved to Liverpool where he became a work horse Milner-esque winger. Now he's right back? Is this the Bob Dylan of footballers always reinventing himself to stay relevant?" Not sure how Dylan would feel about being compared to Mr Kuyt. Always saw him as more of a Coldplay. Steady, boring, the know-what-you-are-getting-type.
4.38pm BST
Some tactics talk for you to pass of as your own knowledge.
Have only seen Salcido in central midfield a couple of times. Not convinced. Vazquez is a big loss
4.27pm BST
Has there ever been a better goalkeeper jersey than this?
4.22pm BST
And some pre-match video, just to spice things up a little. Variety and all that jazz.
4.15pm BST
And just to show that we are not biased, here's some Mexico-based pre-match reading for you. This time it is from the fingers of Sid Lowe who says that Miguel Herrera refused to pick European-based players for the World Cup play-off win over New Zealand but Gio Dos Santos forced his way in and now even Mexicos president is entranced.
Mexicos president Enrique Peña Nieto put on his green tie and gathered his cabinet at Los Pinos, the official residence. It was the countrys first game of the World Cup against Cameroon and he had just flown in from Spain, hurrying back to ensure he did not miss this moment. It did not take long for them to leap into the air and it did not take them long to sink back into their seats, either. Giovani dos Santos scored the first after 11 minutes but it was wrongly disallowed. Then Dos Santos scored again 18 minutes later but that was wrongly disallowed too.
Eventually, Mexico deservedly got one that did count. Oribe Peralta scored on the hour and a photograph of the celebrating cabinet was published soon after. Thats how you play! I believe! Peña Nieto wrote.A draw with Brazil, thanks to the heroics of goalkeeper Memo Ochoa, and an impressive 3-1 victory over Croatia then put the presidents men into the last 16 against Holland. They have reached this stage at every World Cup for 20 years, but never gone further. Their opponents are favourites but there is optimism that this time they might.
4.06pm BST
Some pre-match reading for you. And it comes from the fingers of Ben Lyttleton who says that Dutch once missed five spot-kicks in a Euro 2000 semi-final against Italy and even Johan Cruyff didnt fancy taking them. Wnjoy.
England may be out of the World Cup but there is one other team that fears the penalty shootout almost as much as Roy Hodgsons side.
Holland are one of the tournament favourites after blitzing reigning champions Spain 5-1 and beating Chile 2-0 but they will not want to take Sundays last-16 match against Mexico to a shootout. The reason? Holland have won just one of their five tournament shootouts, a win percentage of 20%. Only England, with their win percentage of 14% ( one win in seven), have a worse record from 12 yards.
3.54pm BST
Holland: Cillessen, Verhaegh, Kuyt, Vlaar, De Vrij, Blind, De Jong, Wijnaldum, Sneijder. Van Persie, Robben. Subs: Vorm, Krul, Martins Indi, Janmaat, De Guzman, Veltman, Kongolo, Clasie, Lens, Fer, Huntelaar, Memphis.
Mexico: Ochoa, Rodríguez, Salcido, Márquez, Herrera, Layún, Dos Santos, Moreno, Guardado, Peralta, Aguilar. Subs: Corona, Talavera, Reyes, Fabián, Jiménez, Pulido, Hernández, Ponce, Brizuela, Aquino, Peña, Vázquez.
Netherlands vs Mexico: Team Lineups #NEDvsMEX pic.twitter.com/wLudub31lP
3.30pm BST
Clarence Seedorf has the ball at his feet. He looks up, sees the space and sets Edgar Davids free on the left. With one touch he finds Patrick Kluivert, with another Kluivert finds the back of the Irish net. One minute from time, Ireland are opened up again. Outside of the box, Kluivert controls the ball with the outside of his boot. Inside the Irish box, he flicks it over Alan Kelly. Holland had made Euro 1996. Before football came home, the Dutch were installed as favourites to take the trophy home. And with good reason. Ajax had won the Champions League in 1995 with 9 Dutch players in the team and lost on penalties in the next season. Combine that with the emergence of talents like of Kluivert, Seedorf and Davids with the experience of Dennis Bergkamp, as well as, others and you see the bookies had a point. It didn't quite work out however.Just 26 minutes into their second game, a 2-0 win over Switzerland, Guus Hiddink subbed an already yellow-carded Seedorf, to save him from himself. He sat on the bench, smoke coming out of his ears, like a cartoon character who has eaten too much chilli. "Hiddink should stop sticking his head up other players' arses," opined Davids to one foreign journalist afterwards. In private, Davids refused to apology. Hiddink told him to do one and called a team meeting. Aware of tension in the squad, he told the players to sort themselves out and left the room. A row over money, respect, and race erupted. It made Mount Etna sound like a field mouse. Jordi Cryuff halted the poisonous lava and though the argument was not resolved, the players agreed to work together. But the spirit was shot and Holland said their goodbyes after a hammering at the hands of England."When the trouble really broke out," said a previously positive Bergkamp, "I knew right away that we had no hope of winning." No hope of winning. That very same sentence could have been applied to the Dutch before the tournament in Brazil broke out. In fact, forget could have. It was. When Valentijn Driessen, the Guardian's network expert on Holland, was asked what is the realistic aim for your team at the World Cup (italics added), he replied: "the second round." He wasn't the only one. Peter McVitie, writing for the excellent Benefoot.net, summed up the public opinion like this:
Heading into the tournament in Brazil, no one, especially the Dutch fans and media, gave them a chance. Getting out of the group stage will be a success, was the general consensus, but even thats difficult.
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