Louis van Gaal's side face the world champions in their opener but the Manchester United striker believes there is a togetherness in the Dutch squad that can help them progress

Smells like team spirit: Robin van Persie says there are no rifts in the Holland camp aheadof the World Cup

As Louis van Gaal’s Holland squad checked into Salvador’s opulent Hotel Deville on Wednesday, the air of calm surrounding the Dutch jarred with the commonly held perception that tournament time is generally when the Oranje descend into chaos.

It is probably apt that the Big Brother television series was the brainchild of Dutch media mogul John de Mol, with the divisive reality show offering an alternative view of what it has often been like inside the Holland camp during a major competition.

De Mol’s Lord of the Flies homage may even have been inspired by the personality clashes between squad members which derailed more than one Dutch attempt at winning a major tournament.

Yet as Holland prepare to begin their 2014 World Cup campaign on Friday against Spain, four years after losing to Vicente del Bosque’s team in a brutal final in Johannesburg at South Africa 2010, Dutch tensions have been limited to a minor spat between Arjen Robben and Bruno Martins Indi, with the Feyenoord defender reacting angrily to the Bayern Munich winger ‘diving’ following a training ground challenge.

Eighteen years have passed since the Dutch truly experienced tournament meltdown, with Edgar Davids being sent home from Euro 96 by Guus Hiddink for claiming the coach should ‘should stop putting his head in some players' asses.’

But despite Van Gaal’s ferocious reputation and the egos of senior figures such as Robin van Persie, Wesley Sneijder, Nigel de Jong and Robben, the blend of experience and youth in the Dutch squad has led to a new sense of focus ahead of the clash with the world champions.

"Our focus is good and it has to be," Van Persie said. “What you saw in the past often, is that in the beginning, many jokes were being made, but I think that's less the case now.

"This is purely because of the focus we have as a group. We are therefore looking forward to the competition and are really eager to get started."

Even Van Gaal’s decision to leave his post at the end of the World Cup in order to succeed David Moyes at Manchester United has done little to upset the mood within the Dutch camp.

Rather than inject uncertainty into the squad and diminish the coaches authority – Hiddink has already been announced as Van Gaal’s successor – the view in Holland is one of pride that Van Gaal will leave to take on such a prestigious role.

If anything, Van Gaal’s move to United has provided a confidence boost to Dutch football and many regard the move as giving the squad motivation to send him off on the back of a successful tournament.

Van Persie, Van Gaal’s captain, is an unabashed admirer of the 62-year-old and despite the coach insisting that Holland have only a ’20 per cent chance’ of winning the World Cup, the United forward believes the squad is capable of meeting the Dutch FA’s target of a place in the semi-finals.

"Do not underestimate us," Van Persie said. “Even though Spain are a great team. In my view, they are the best team in the world, but we are also very good. Don't forget that.
"Of course, we have to prove ourselves again, but it is also a great challenge. We will therefore give it everything.

"I'm positive for everything that lies ahead and have faith in our team.

"And if we – and I mean not only the players, but also the staff and the media – can say that we've had a good tournament in the World Cup, whatever the outcome, it will be a success for us."

The key to Holland’s hopes of emerging from Group B, where Chile will provide a stern test of their prospects of progressing to the knockout stages, will be Van Gaal as he moulds a team of unproven youngsters with the senior players.

Van Gaal insists "there are eight to ten teams better than we are", with the coach identifying the quarter-finals as a more realistic target than the last four, but the emerging players such as Martins Indi, Daley Blind and Jordy Clasie have the potential to become stars in Brazil.

"We have a young team, but it is talented," Robben said. "Experience is important, especially mentally, but on the pitch it is all about playing in the right way, doing what you have to do.

"It doesn’t matter if you are 22 or 32. You just have to do what is asked for."