Dutch defender John Heitinga will be firmly in the spotlight here on Tuesday in the World Cup semifinal as he is assigned the task of neutralising the Uruguayans’ most potent threat Diego Forlan.
The 26-year-old Dutchman will have one advantage in that he played alongside the former Manchester United striker for one season at Atletico Madrid before moving to Everton. The two remain friends but Heitinga said that would count for nothing on Tuesday.
“Once I knew that our two countries would play each other in the semifinal, I sent a text message to my former clubmate. My message? ‘It is going to be one hell of a match Diego!’”.
“Diego is as good with both feet and therefore impossible for a defender to predict what he’s going to do. And it is imperative not to allow him time to shoot even from distance, because he possesses one of the best shots on the planet,” he added. — AFP