The Dutch national team manager Louis van Gaal has said that he has selected the 23 man squad for the upcoming friendly match against Germany on the basis of form and formation. The match between the Netherlands and Germany will undoubtedly be the highlight of the friendly fixtures set for this week. One of the major absentees from the Dutch squad will be the Manchester United striker Robin van Persie, who has continued where he has left off from last season. The striker has been in impressive form for his club team after scoring 11 goals in 14 matches, but he will not be available for the Germany match.
A number of players like Maarten Stekelenburg and Kevin Strootman have been included in the squad for this match despite the fact that they are not close to full fitness yet. However, the manager has said that his decision has been taken on the basis of form and the formation that the team will play against Germany. Van Gaal has also decided to leave out the Inter Milan midfielder Wesley Sneijder from the squad. He has said that the decision is taken due to the lack of regular playing time for the former Real Madrid man.
“My team is based on the form and shape of the players, but there are also those that are unfit or already injured. Those places are still open (Lens, Narsingh, Strootman and Stekelenburg]. I think a selection must be earned. Sneijder is not in that group of four because he has not played for six weeks. He’s fit enough to train, but not to play matches. Everybody has to be fit, we’re not a rehabilitation centre,” said the Dutch manager ahead of the Germany encounter. Netherlands come into the match on the back of four successive victories.