van der Vaart dreams of victory

Dutch play maker Rafael van der Vaart is dreaming of emulating the 1988 heroes that secured European Championship glory; 20 years on. The Hamburg midfielder believes that the side have the ability to lift the trophy in Austria and Switzerland.

"We have been drawn into a very hard group, but it is also the most beautiful one," said the playmaker.

"I hope that we play well and also have a bit of luck. That’s something a team always needs. Look at the Dutch side in ’88, with that first [1-0] loss against the [former] USSR and that late Wim Kieft header against Ireland.

"I can’t remember it [that tournament] that well as I was just five at the time, but I know that it can happen again. Ed van der Sar appropriately said after winning the European Champions League with Manchester United that he had always hoped his ‘Hans van Breukelen moment’ would come. And now I say that I would like to relive that ‘1988 moment’."