Soccer-Van Basten seeks to cure Dutch penalty disease
LAUSANNE, Switzerland, June 5 (Reuters) - Netherlands coach Marco van Basten has made his squad take penalties in their preparations for Euro 2008 as he bids to cure the Dutch disease of regularly failing to win shootouts.
In their last seven major international tournaments the Dutch have lost four times on penalties, only ending the streak when they beat Sweden in the Euro 2004 quarter-finals.
The prospect of a shootout has been increased at these finals by a change in the UEFA regulations which means teams could face penalties after their last group match.
If two teams playing each other in the final round of group games draw and are level overall -- with no other teams involved -- on points, goal difference and goals scored, then their finishing position will be decided by a shootout.
Van Basten has tried to make sure the Dutch overcome their poor shootout reputation by making each player take penalties until he scores at the end of training sessions.
Despite their struggles from the spot over the past two decades, however, there have been some individual highlights in more recent times that should give them confidence.
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