NEW DUTCH HEAD coach Danny Blind began his reign with 1-0 loss to Iceland at the Amsterdam Arena.
The Netherlands had already been beaten by tonight’s opponents and the Czech Republic in the past 12 months, and they sat behind both in third place going into the game.
Their poor form prompted Guus Hiddink to step down back in July with former Ajax defender and manager Danny Blind, formerly assistant boss under Louis van Gaal, handed the job a year early.
But it was a night to forget as Arjen Robben withdrew injured after a half hour, before Bruno Martins Indi was shown a straight red card minutes later for raising his hands to Kolbeinn Sigthorsson.
Matters got worse for the home side as Gregory van der Viel conceded a penalty early in in the second half and Swansea’s Gylfi Sigurdsson stepped up to scored past Jasper Cillessen.
Iceland, aiming to reach their first major tournament, lead the Czech Republic by two points in Group A while Holland, eight points back, may have to accept a place in the play-offs.
