Advocaat: Perhaps we faced Germany too early; today, the players played like warriors

On June 20, after a 0-0 draw with Ecuador that earned Curaçao its first ever FIFA World Cup point, Curaçao coach Advocaat gave an interview.

Following such an impressive result, 76-year-old Curaçao coach Advocaat could not hide his pride. After leading the team, which was participating in the FIFA World Cup for the first time, to its historic first point, he highly praised the players' performance.

When asked why there was such a dramatic difference compared with the 1-7 defeat to Germany in the first match, Advocaat said:

"Looking back, the match against Germany may have come too early for us."

"Today we saw Germany's performance against Côte d'Ivoire, and they were a truly great team. In our first match, a world football powerhouse like Germany was simply too strong for us."

"Today, however, we fielded 11 players who truly represented Curaçao. They played exactly as they should and fought as if their lives depended on it. I take my hat off to my players; they are all warriors, all heroes. I was almost moved to tears watching them defend together."

"When you have that kind of determination, you find that even against a team of an extremely high level—both collectively and individually—you can still compete."

"I think our team proved that today. We caused our opponents enough problems and showed how competitive we are."

When asked about appearing very emotional after the match, Advocaat said: "Actually, I wasn't as emotional today as I was after the first match. Today, I felt the team played very well, and I was very satisfied with our performance."

"What really overwhelmed me was the first match. We lost 1-7, yet the fans still supported the players passionately afterward. Normally, in such a situation, you might expect boos and criticism, but the opposite happened."

"The fans gave the players tremendous support, and today the players repaid that energy to the fans. I think it was a truly beautiful moment."

When asked about King Willem-Alexander, Queen Máxima, and members of the Dutch royal family visiting the locker room to celebrate with the team, Advocaat said: "I experienced the 1994 FIFA World Cup in the United States, and the royal family visited our team then as well."

"But today's visit still left a deep impression on me. Whether it was the King, the Queen, or their daughters, they truly integrated with the team."

"They danced with everyone, completely without pretense. You could see genuine joy on their faces. Honestly, aside from this draw, that was the most touching and happiest moment for me tonight."

"People always find it easy to criticize others, but ultimately, they are real people too. Seeing such genuine emotion from them makes me respect them greatly."