World Cup, Mexico vs Netherlands result: Oranje stun El Tri, 2-1, with late PK

On Sunday afternoon, the first of two Round of 16 matches took place in the 2014 FIFA World Cup as Mexico and the Netherlands took the pitch at Estádio Castelão in Fortaleza.

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It was a very intriguing match heading into the game, and it kept both nations’ fans on the edge of their seats.

Mexico put up a spirited heroics, but the Netherlands were able to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat to get the win, 2-1.

During the first half, Mexico was able to dictate the tempo and found themselves creating the more significant scoring chances. The Netherlands, meanwhile, were unable to break through the center of the Mexico defense and we were left with a scoreless draw after the first 45 minutes.

To start the second half, Mexico substituted in Diego Reyes for an injured Hector Moreno, who was injured during a tackle in the box at the end of the first half that likely should have resulted in a Netherlands penalty kick.

The substitution was the first for Mexico, but the second in the game.

In just the 9th minute of the contest, the Netherlands were forced to unexpectedly use a substitution on Nigel De Jong.

Building off of their strong first half, Mexico came out firing early in the second half and found themselves ahead on the scoreboard after a goal from Giovani dos Santos in the 48th minute went flying by Dutch goalie Jasper Cillessen.

The Netherlands had an opportunity to even the score on a set piece from the corner, but Guillermo “Memo” Ochoa bailed Mexico out with a stunning save.

Javier Aquino replaced Giovani dos Santos in the 60th minute, as Mexico tried to hang on for the lead.

Things were starting to get more physical in the contest, and Mexico’s Paul Aguilar picked up a yellow card for a tackle in the midfield.

Arjen Robben was finding success creating runs for the Dutch offensive attack, as the Mexico defense started to slow down. Robben schooled Rafa Marquez on a run in the 74th minute to have a clear shot on goal, but Ochoa was able to pull off another save.

After the save, Oribe Peralta came off of the pitch as El Tri put their super sub Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez into the game.

With just ten minutes left in the game, Miguel Herrera received a warning for the referees for working his way onto the field, but his passion is what has helped to drive the Mexican side throughout the tournament.

The Netherlands were upping the tempo and playing most of the closing minutes in the attacking half, but Mexico’s stout defense was managing to hang on.

Herrera had a terrible turnover in the midfield for El Tri and allowed a counter attack for the Dutch, but a shot was deflected off of a Dutch player and Mexico regained possession. Chicharito looked for a run on the counter as Mexico tried to hold possession for the final four minutes of the game but they were unable to hang on and the Netherlands got the ball back.

In the 87th minute, the Netherlands got another cornerkick and the ball was hit back to Wesley Sneijder and he had a clear shot into the back of the net. Ochoa had no hope at saving the ball, as his defenders blocked his view.

With six minutes of stoppage time, Robben went on a run deep into the box and drew a penalty that drew a yellow card for Marquez. As a result, it was Ochoa vs. Huntlaar 1-on-1 for the game. Guardado also picked up a yellow card for El Tri.

Huntelaar was able to convert the PK to put the Netherlands up in stoppage time.

In just five minutes, Mexico went from thinking about the quarterfinals to being on the brink of elimination.

That was all she wrote, as the late Netherlands heroics were enough to send the Dutch into the quarterfinals against the winner of Costa Rica vs. Greece.

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