The Netherlands pulled off a miracle escape at the World Cup in Brazil this morning to beat Mexico 2-1 and progress to the quarter-finals.
After impressing in the group stages, the Netherlands looked headed for a shock exit when they trailed 1-0 with only two minutes of regulation time remaining.
But Wesley Sneijder’s fierce drive brought the Dutch level before another late twist turned the contest on its head. The Netherlands received a penalty kick in stoppage time after the referee ruled Arjen Robben was brought down illegally by Mexico captain Rafael Marquez.
Klass-Jan Huntelaar stepped up to the spot and cooly converted the chance to deliver the Dutch an unlikely win. Huntelaar, who plays for Schalke in Germany, told reporters afterwards that he was happy to accept the penalty-taking duty. “I had a good feeling when Arjen came to me and asked me to do the shoot,” he said. “So I took the ball and shot it in the corner.”
It was a heart-breaking end for Mexico, who took the lead just after half-time through Giovani Dos Santos. Mexico coach Miguel Herrera said his team paid a high price for its late lapses. “We’d done really well. Then the team sits back and we start to give chances to a team that had not done anything.”
In the morning’s other round-of-16 clash, Costa Rica beat Greece on penalties after scores finished 1-1.
