Netherlands

WorldCup2006

The team is young, many would not recognise half the team. Older players are left out including Seedorf, Maakay and Davids. One of the reason France did poorly in 2002 was because they were old, famous, rich and the defending champs - did that, done that, money in the bank, nothing left to prove. You need hunger and youth in the squad as they will fight and have a lot to prove. It will be the ticket to doubling or tripling your value as a player.There is a sufficient mix of experience in Nistelrooy, Van Der Sar, Heitinga, Van Bronckhorst, Van Bommel and Robben. Whether Holland does well or not will depend on how well the newbies perform - especially Vennegoor, Van Der Vaart, Sneijder and Kuyt.

The trump card for Holland this time around is that there is a lot less internal bickering, and the team does play for more than just themselves and their country, they also play for their coach. Marco Van Basten, easily the top 3 players ... ever ... from Holland, and probably a teen idol to many of the current team members, has been able to ignite free-flowing attacking football with sensible defending. Its a remarkable thing to have a team that will play for the coach, and that might just be the edge Holland needs to do well this time around.