Netherlands coach Louis van Gaal said that he had left a good legacy for Dutch football at the end of his third time in charge of the national team.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Van Gaal's third reign ended after a penalty shootout after his side came back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 with two late goals from Wout Weghorst before Argentina came through the shootout after Emiliano Martinez made two saves.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"I will not be continuing as a coach as I was only doing this for a limited period of time, so this is my last game," he said, reports Xinhua. "What I'm leaving behind is an excellent group, personally and in terms of football, this is a very close team with a great spirit and a lot of skill. I was in charge for 20 games and we didn't lose in that time -- that's for a reason."<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"I'm really proud and I had a wonderful time. It is very painful to see how we have gone out after doing everything possible to stop it from happening," added Van Gaal. "It was a fantastic period of time, with the same group of players and I look back in a very positive way."<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Looking back on the match, he admitted the Dutch had been below their best for a part of the game.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"In the first half, it was the same problem; we couldn't find a free player when we had the ball. I tried to change that at halftime, with a 4-3-3 and then a 4-4-1-1 and then a 4-4-2."<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"We fought hard in the second half to try and get back from two goals down against Argentina, who pressed hard. We equalized, but we lost the shootout," commented Van Gaal.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"I have nothing to criticise the players. It's fantastic to come back from two goals down, but unfortunate to lose on penalties," he said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"We fought hard in the second half to try and get back from two goals down against Argentina, who pressed hard. We equalized, but we lost the shootout," commented Van Gaal.<\/p>\r\n\r\n