Milwaukee men's soccer head coach Chris Whalley shares his thoughts from the final games of the World Cup:
On the last four teams in the tournament:
"I expected Spain to be in the final, so I saw that coming. And I always thought Netherlands was too strong for Uruguay. It was a great game though - I think that game was a lot better than the Spain game. Five goals in a World Cup semifinal is exciting and the Netherlands scored three good goals, so it was great to see. And I have had Dutch guys play for me in the past, so I have a soft spot for Holland."
On the game plan for the final:
"I think the Dutch coach was smart ... he looked at the two teams and, player for player, they were not as good as the Spaniards. So, they tried to frustrate and slow the game down, but they played a way that kept Spain under the reigns, so within that, they had a chance. To be fair, the Netherlands had chances to win the game and didn't take them. If Robben takes the chance, they win the game, and everyone is singing the coach's praises. I think the best team in the world won, which is great, because some times in soccer, the best teams don't win. But the Spanish team was the best team on the day and when you've got guys like Fabregas and Torres on the bench, I think it shows how good your team is."
On the game-winning goal:
"I think it's nice that a goal - and a good goal - won the World Cup final rather than somebody missing a penalty kick and then having that hang over them. It was a good goal, it was well-taken and pleased that he finished that way. It probably should have been a corner on the other end, and then a minute later, it popped up. Iniesta's first touch wasn't great, which made the ball bobble up in the air, but then his technique to get his knee over the ball and hit it hard across the keeper was fantastic. The goalkeeper really didn't have much of a chance because he was so close and he hit it so hard. It was a great way to finish a great tournament. All in all, I think it was a great World Cup. It was fantastic advertisement for soccer in the America and I enjoyed it."
