Johannesburg: Netherlands forward Arjen Robben insists that he would prefer playing an ugly game to win the World Cup, rather than a beautiful one and lose.
Netherlands will face Spain in Sunday’s World Cup final at Soccer City in Johannesburg.
“I prefer a very ugly game and we win, instead of a beautiful game and we lose. We can always rely on our good organization and from there you know you can go on,” The Sun quoted Robben, as saying.
“We’re in a World Cup final, so it doesn’t matter how we’ve played. Of course there is the intention to play good football but most important is the result,” he added.
He said that he has been so focused on his game that he has had minimal contact with friends from Bayern Munich or old club Real Madrid, who have been competing for other countries.
“These are all things that aren’t important. I don’t want friends, I want to be world champion,” he added.
The injury-prone 26-year-old further said that he is still not properly fit after pulling a hamstring in the build-up to the tournament.
“You want to be at your best for a World Cup final against Spain, but I’m not at my summit. Although I can play, I haven’t been pain-free in any game,” Robben said.
“Fortunately it’s getting better, but it’s still not perfect. I will just try to be in the best possible form I can,” he added.
Netherlands go into the final unbeaten in 25 matches and bolstered by 14 successive wins, in qualifying and the tournament to date, in the World Cup.
ANI
First Published: Saturday, July 10, 2010, 16:53