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5/17/14

Soccer World Cup Friendly: Netherlands-Ecuador ends 1-1 in World Cup tuneup

Robin van Persie scored with a trademark left-foot volley to give a new-look Netherlands a 1-1 draw with Ecuador in a pre-World Cup friendly on Saturday.

Van Persie controlled a long pass from Jordy Clasie on his chest and immediately smashed it past Maximo Banguera in the 37th minute to cancel out a ninth-minute strike by Jefferson Montero that gave Ecuador a surprise lead.

"We saw a magnificent goal," coach Louis van Gaal said. "A fantastic pass by Clasie and the way Van Persie finished it was phenomenal."

Netherlands coach Louis van Gaal started with the formation he plans to use in Brazil — a five-man defense, three in midfield and two attackers. He hasn't yet settled on which players will play where and the sometimes stuttering Dutch performance showed that they still need to get used to playing it.

Read more: Netherlands-Ecuador ends 1-1 in World Cup tuneup

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