CAPE TOWN, South Africa – In a week’s time, Andre Ooijer could be returning home to the Netherlands with a World Cup winners’ medal in his pocket and the thanks of a nation ringing in his ears.
And he won’t have a job.
After being released by Dutch club PSV Eindhoven at the end of last season, Ooijer has just a single offer on the table. It is from AEK Larnaca in the tiny European nation of Cyprus, whose national team is ranked 67th in the world.
On the surface, it is difficult to see why Ooijer is not in greater demand. After being drafted into the Netherlands lineup in its quarterfinal against Brazil after Joris Mathijsen was injured in pregame warmups, Ooijer performed strongly and shut down striker Luis Fabiano in the second half.
But Ooijer turns 36 in a week, and while he can stir reserves of energy from his aging legs for a handful of games at the World Cup, his ability to perform strongly over the course of a long club season is questionable.
“I am no longer 18 years old,” he said. “And for the moment I am without a club. It has affected me, but now, that is a thousand miles away from my mind.”
No surprise there. The next week gives Ooijer the chance to be a part of something truly special, something he could barely have dreamed of when he headed into this tournament as a central defender backup to Mathijsen.
Mathijsen has undergone treatment to his knee since the 2-1 win over Brazil, but it is still doubtful whether he can get through 90 – and possibly 120 – minutes of semifinal action.
That means Ooijer is likely to retain his place against Uruguay at Cape Town’s Green Point Stadium on Tuesday, where he would be charged with handling the South American side’s in-form striker Diego Forlan.
If Forlan can be controlled then the Netherlands would have one foot in the final, and Ooijer, a veteran of 56 international appearances, will have helped out his country once again.
Even if it doesn’t help his own career much.
“I am not doing this for how it can benefit my chances of finding a club,” Ooijer said. “I am doing this to help us win the World Cup. I am the daddy of the team. The guys are so much younger than me and it is interesting to be around them.
“But I believe in all of them and I know that with this group of players we have what it takes to become the champions of the World Cup.”
The Netherlands has never won a World Cup, having come tantalizingly close in both 1974 and 1978 in losses to host nations West Germany and Argentina in the final.
“For most of the players, that is so long ago it is like ancient history,” Ooijer said. “I am a bit older so I realize how close they came and what it would mean to the country if we could win the prize. That itself would be worth more than anything, better than anything else that could happen to me.”
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