Netherlands thrash Andorra 3-0 in World Cup qualifier

 Netherlands thrash Andorra 3-0 in World Cup qualifier

ROTTERDAM, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- The Netherlands had no trouble winning its third match in European zone 2014 World Cup qualifying¹ Group D, beating Andorra 3-0 in Rotterdam on Friday.

Coach Louis van Gaal opted² for Klaas-jan Huntelaar as the center striker, leaving Manchester United star Robin³ van Persie on the bench. The Dutch missed big stars Arjen Robben and Wesley Sneijder due to injuries. Because of Sneijder's absence Kevin Strootman started as captain.

Rafael van der Vaart opened the scoring in the 7th minute after a combination⁴ with Huntelaar and the latter headed in the second goal eight minutes later. After the first two goals the Dutch was not able to give the audience a blistering⁵ performance, the match became rather dull. Bruno Martins Indi scored, but his goal was denied due to offside.

In the second half the Netherlands continued its dominance which led to a goal by debutant Ruben Schaken ('50). However, 'Oranje' was not able to score more goals.

The Dutch are tied with Romania on a maximum of nine points from three games in Group D. Earlier on Friday the Romanians beat Turkey 1-0 in Istanbul. The Netherlands and Romania will meet next Tuesday in Bucharest.

1 qualifying   

使具有资格的

参考例句：

• players who fail at the pre-qualifying stage 在预选赛中淘汰掉的选手
• A doctoral candidate is required to pass a qualifying examination. 考博士需通过一个资格考试。

2 opted   

v.选择，挑选( opt的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She was co-opted onto the board. 她获增选为董事会成员。
• After graduating she opted for a career in music. 毕业后她选择了从事音乐工作。

3 robin   

n.知更鸟，红襟鸟

参考例句：

• The robin is the messenger of spring.知更鸟是报春的使者。
• We knew spring was coming as we had seen a robin.我们看见了一只知更鸟，知道春天要到了。

4 combination   

n.组合，合并，联合；

参考例句：

• He carried on the business in combination with his friends.他与朋友们合伙做生意。
• The materials can be used singly or in combination.这些材料可以单独使用也可以混合用。

5 blistering   

adj.酷热的；猛烈的；使起疱的；可恶的v.起水疱；起气泡；使受暴晒n.[涂料] 起泡

参考例句：

• The runners set off at a blistering pace. 赛跑运动员如脱缰野马般起跑了。
• This failure is known as preferential wetting and is responsible for blistering. 这种故障称为优先吸湿，是产生气泡的原因。 来自辞典例句