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Kluivert in search of more World Cup glory
Posted: Sunday July 05, 1998 11:27 PM
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Learning balance: Kluivert rebounded from his two-match suspension to score a goal against Argentina (AP) |
MONTE-CARLO, Monaco (AP) -- Desperate for a transfer after a troubled
season at struggling Italian giant AC Milan, Patrick Kluivert wanted to
showcase his talents at the World Cup.
Instead, he put his fiery temper in the international spotlight by
elbowing Belgian defender Lorenzo Staelens in the Dutch World Cup opener.
He redressed the balance with a goal Saturday against Argentina and
is hungry for more glory in a semifinal against Brazil on
Tuesday.
"If you play well at the World Cup, everything goes a little more
smoothly," Kluivert said Sunday.
His name has been linked with a possible move to clubs including
Manchester United and Arsenal.
Forming a double-Dutch forward line with Dennis Bergkamp at Arsenal would
certainly appeal to Kluivert, although he refuses to be specific about
where he wants to go.
"He can put the ball in the right spot where I want the ball, in front of
the goal," Kluivert said of Bergkamp. "It is very important to have such a
good connection with a forward player and that connection is very good with
me and Dennis."
The two linked perfectly for the Netherlands' first goal against Argentina in the quarterfinal Saturday.
Stooping low, Berkamp headed a Ronald de Boer pass directly into
Kluivert's path, leaving the 22-year-old to run into the middle of the
penalty area and place the ball past Argentine keeper Carlos Roa from
almost on top of the penalty spot.
However well he plays in the remainder of the World Cup, it is still not
certain he will be leaving Milan, which has put a reported $17.5 million
price tag on Kluivert.
Clubs may be reluctant to invest heavily in a talented but mercurial
player, who shot to fame and then fell from grace in one turbulent year.
Kluivert scored the only goal in Ajax Amsterdam's 1-0 victory over AC
Milan in the 1995 European Champions Cup final, but later the same year he
crashed a borrowed BMW into another car in Amsterdam, killing the other
car's driver.
An Amsterdam court convicted him of vehicular homicide and sentenced him
to community service.
Earlier this year, controversy again struck when a young woman accused
Kluivert and a group of his friends of raping her. He was never charged and
this week he was awarded legal costs in the case.
But Kluivert insists he is learning from the setbacks and from a slump in
form this season in Italy.
"At Ajax everything went well ... now I have the idea that I have to work
twice as hard," he said.
During his two-match suspension for elbowing Staelens in the Belgium game,
Kluivert impressed Dutch coach Guus Hiddink with his commitment and
positive attitude in training.
"He kept working hard and showed he really wanted a starting place,"
Hiddink said.
Kluivert finally got his reward with a spot among the first 11 against
Argentina and made the most of it. His goal came in just the 12th minute.
"I hadn't played for three games so I was fresh," he said.
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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