BRUSSELS, June 26 (Xinhua) -- After the Netherlands
was defeated by Portugal in the World Cup, one Dutch newspaper on Monday
suggests mild anti-depressants or a vacation in the sun to lick the wounds.
De Volkskrant daily newspaper headlined "Bitter
defeat in derailed duel" and spoke of a battle "characterized by shameless
provocation, serious fouls, fraudulent falls, arbitrary errors and a goal, by
Portugal's Maniche in the first half".
The Algemeen Dagblad daily offered advice on how to
deal with the loss, suggesting homeopathic anti-depressants or a vacation in the
sun.
Dutch public broadcaster NOS said some eight million
people in the country of 16 million watched the Dutch squad lose 1-0 in the
stormy match on Sunday evening, in which Russian referee Valentin Ivanov sent
off four players.
Mass-circulation daily De Telegraaf's banner headline
read: "Tears after battle -- we better, they cleverer".
"It degenerated into a life-or-death match, with one
player who was mercilessly eliminated, Cristiano Ronaldo, and a bucket of red
and yellow cards."
On the Dutch play, the Telegraaf commented: "The
fighting spirit was awesome but the execution little thought out."
"Sad Retreat" was the headline of the Algemeen
Dagblad daily. "End of the World Cup after bizarre gangster duel, Orange in
tears after 1-0 loss." Enditem