Koeman is optimistic about Verbruggen and knows who can replace him


Ronald Koeman is still unsure about Bart Verbruggen's participation against Japan. The Dutch coach is hopeful, but cannot yet release his goalkeeper. Verbruggen was injured in the Netherlands' final friendly match towards the World Cup after an unsuccessful tackle against Uzbekistan. He was replaced by Flekken during the match. On Wednesday, Verbruggen trained separately from the group. At a press conference, Koeman was asked about the goalkeeper's situation. "Okay, it could be worse," said the coach. "It's just an injury. We still don't know what that means for Sunday. We're optimistic, but day by day we'll assess how he's doing and whether that will be enough to play on Sunday." "We still have a few days, so let's wait," continued Koeman, who emphasized that he is not worried: "Because we have good goalkeepers with us." The coach knows who his second goalkeeper is, but still needs to inform Flekken and Roefs. "We're talking to all the players and tonight (Kansas is seven hours behind Holland, editor's note) I'm going to have a talk with the goalkeepers, where we're going to clarify this. We already have a decision, yes."