Oranje see red in the yellows

Freiburg: The Netherlands may play without seven starters for its final Group C match, preferring to rest players to have a fit lineup for the World Cup's second round.

Wednesday's match between the two already-qualified teams will determine first and second place in the group.

Six Dutch players have yellow cards and if any of them get another against Argentina they would miss next weekend's game.

"We don't want to risk anything that concerns the yellow cards. So that means that if we have a doubt that he could get another yellow card and miss the fourth game of us, we don't take any risks," Netherlands coach Marco van Basten said Sunday.

The winner of Group C meets the second-place team from Group D in the next phase. The loser of Netherlands-Argentina would have to face the Group D winner, which will either be Portugal or Mexico. Angola can also advance, but cannot finish first.

Van Basten said he would more than likely also rest midfielder Phillip Cocu, who has an ankle injury, and right back Johnny Heitinga, who is nursing a hamstring injury and has a yellow card.

"It is a matter of a few days," Van Basten said of the defender. The Netherlands captain Edwin van der Sar backs the choice of his coach.

“It is important that you have the strongest possible team in the second round,” Van der Sar said.

That would mean leaving up to five starters on the bench against Argentina, hoping to ensure nobody gets suspended.

Players with one yellow card after the first round go into the second with a clean slate. Of the starting defense, only Andre Ooijer has not been booked so far.

In midfield, Mark van Bommel faces the same predicament and so does winger Arjen Robben, the standout player of the team with two player of the match awards.

If Van Basten takes every precaution, it might be a largely second-string team taking the field against Argentina, which faces the same questions. Still, Van Basten insisted the lineup would still be credible.

"We have also to put 11 players on the field which give us a guarantee to perform well," he said.

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Argentina coach Jose Pekerman has kept silent on his strategy, so the most anticipated match of the first round may turn into a major disappointment.

By Wednesday evening, the teams will already know who has won Group D and who is second, adding another twist.

Van Basten said, however, that because that game ends only three hours before the Argentina vs. Netherlands kickoff, there was no way he could base his strategy on that.

"That is too late to change the game plan," he said.

The Dutch have already beaten Mexico with a second-string team in a warmup game early this month.

And they were eliminated by Portugal in the 2004 European Championship semifinals.

"We still have something to settle with Portugal," Robben said. "But it doesn't matter who we will face."