André Ooijer looks back: “That’s what it felt like.”

It will not have escaped anyone’s notice that the Dutch national team has been eliminated at the 2026 World Cup due to Morocco. However, that was not the case on 2 July 2010, when Oranje—under Bert van Marwijk—geared up for the quarterfinal against football powerhouse Brazil at the World Cup in South Africa.

The Netherlands managed after a dramatic first half, in which Brazil eventually only led 0-1, to turn the match around after the break and win 2-1 thanks to two goals from Wesley Sneijder. Ahead of the match, Van Marwijk was forced to make a substitution.

Defender Joris Mathijsen was injured during the warm-up, and as a result André Ooijer was allowed to make his debut in the starting lineup. Ooijer was without a club at the World Cup since PSV did not extend his contract, and he had to make do with a backup role behind John Heitinga and thus Joris Mathijssen.

In the Red White Podcast, Ooijer explains precisely how that day went for him, when Phillip Cocu, back then assistant national team coach, quietly told him that the defender could put his boots on. ''Then I thought to myself: 'Well, I guess.' So I sat down calmly and I watched what was happening around me,'' Ooijer is candid at the table during the podcast.

''At that moment, Joris (Mathijsen) is hesitating at the massage table there, and Rafael (van der Vaart) walks over to him'', continues the 55-times capped international. ''Raf says: 'What are you doing, man? Is it or isn't it?' Yes, I'm hesitating. Hesitating? How come hesitating?' And then he walked over to Van Marwijk: 'Coach, this can't be right. Come on. Off. Put André on''', Ooijer still remembers.

After that, PSV supporter Pascal van der Voort goes into why Ooijer did that, to which the former PSV player responds. ''The moment that strengthened me: there was no doubt in the group. I felt that. Maybe it wasn't like that at all. It could also be. That they thought: 'what are we going to get now?' That could be, but I didn't have that at all. And everyone was boxing right away, high five. Period. I'm always calm in those things anyway, so I had something like: 'I'm done. Period''', said Ooijer.