Arjen Robben apologised for diving during the Netherlands’ dramatic victory over Mexico, but insisted that the crucial penalty that sent Louis van Gaal’s side through to the quarter-finals was legitimate.

The Mexico manager, Miguel Herrera, accused the Bayern Munich forward of cheating to win the penalty that knocked his side out and demanded that the Portuguese referee, Pedro Proenca, be sent home from the tournament.

Speaking to Dutch television, Robben said: “The one at the end was a clear penalty but I have to admit there was an incident in the first half where I did dive. I must apologise. I should not be doing that.”

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With Robin van Persie off the field, it was expected that Robben himself would take the kick but he gave it to Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, on the grounds that Robben had been the one fouled.

Shape Created with Sketch. Netherlands 2 Mexico 1 player ratings Show all 23 left Created with Sketch. right Created with Sketch. Shape Created with Sketch. Netherlands 2 Mexico 1 player ratings 1/23 Jasper Cillessen Looked nervous in the early stages but stood up firm when called upon. Very little he could have done about Giovani dos Santos’ wonder strike. 7 Getty Images 2/23 Paul Verhaegh Did the unglamorous, but essential, job of mopping up after any Dutch mistakes in front of the backline. A composed and measured performance from right-back. 7 Getty Images 3/23 Daley Blind Raced forward wherever possible but lacked the desire to get back when needed. Appeared complacent with Dirk Kuyt as cover. 6 Getty Images 4/23 Ron Vlaar The Aston Villa man delivered a typically stern and imposing performance. Did very little wrong and posed a threat from set-plays. 7 Getty Images 5/23 Bruno Martins Indi Replaced Nigel de Jong after just nine minutes and delivered a combative and committed display. 7 Getty Images 6/23 Stefan de Vrij Desperately unlucky not to have scored, forcing Guillermo Ochoa into a stunning second-half save, but kept his head up and delivered a good shift. 7 Getty Images 7/23 Georginio Wijnaldum The PSV starlet was muzzled for much of the first half but found more joy in the second. Ran at the Mexico defence to some success. 7 Getty Images 8/23 Dirk Kuyt Playing more defensively than British audiences will have been expecting, after featuring in attack for Liverpool, Dirk Kuyt delivered an impressive shift. Never stopped running on his 100th cap. 7 Getty Images 9/23 Wesley Sneijder Will be remembered for the bullet finish which got the Netherlands back into the game. Had a quiet game though which, like his tournament as a whole, lacked penetration. 6 Getty Images 10/23 Arjen Robben Eventually won his side a penalty after many failed attempts at allegedly deceiving the referee. Had one decent shout in the first half. The Bayern Munich man was tireless, however, and never gave up in his pursuit of a goal. 7 Getty Images 11/23 Robin van Persie Despite the expectations on his shoulders, this was a decidedly quiet afternoon from the Manchester United striker. Was substituted for Klaas-Jan Huntelaar who ultimately won the game. 6 Getty Images 12/23 Klaas Jan Huntelaar Despite only being on the pitch for little over fifteen minutes, the Schalke striker made his mark. Scoring the penalty which won Netherlands the game, Huntelaar was confident enough in his own abilities to take the spot-kick. 8 Getty Images 13/23 Ochoa.jpg A stunning display defaced by two late, unstoppable, goals. After brilliantly saving Stefan de Vrij’s point blank effort, it was clear that it would take quite a strike to get past Ochoa tonight. Lightning struck twice. 8 14/23 Paul Aguilar Striving to get forward, while remaining wary of the Dutch counter attack, this was a decent if unremarkable outing for Paul Aguilar. 6.5 15/23 Rafael Marquez After earning many plaudits over an illustrious career, the former Barcelona centre-back had an afternoon to forget. Clumsily bundling into every Dutch attacker in sight, it’s no great surprise that he gave away the late penalty. 5 16/23 Francisco Rodriguez An excellent first half display wasn’t built upon and Francisco Rodriguez ultimately struggled to handle the Netherlands’ attacking prowess in the final stages. The heat will surely have been a factor. 7 17/23 Miguel Layun Began the game by showcasing his abilities to shoot from distance but rightfully opted to shift his focus towards firing crosses into the Dutch area. Cutting inside dangerously, this was an impressive performance. 7 18/23 Carlos Salcido With a frightening ability to shoot from distance, Carlos Salcido will perhaps wonder if he could have contributed more. 6 19/23 Hector Moreno Standing up to the Netherlands attack for much of tonight’s game, Hector Moreno will be bitterly disappointed to have been part of a defence which conceded two late goals. 6.5 20/23 Hector Herrera Tried to join the Mexican strikeforce whenever possible but was understandably nervous about leaving the door open behind him. A mature, if unadventurous, display. 7 21/23 Andres Guardado Was occasionally isolated on the left flank and struggled to create chances with such little cover. Unlucky not to have scored with a long-range effort in the second half. 6.5 22/23 Giovani Dos Santos Scoring a stunning goal to set Mexico up for an unlikely victory, the former Tottenham Hotspur man was a delight to watch. A regular thorn in the Netherlands’ side, this was an exciting performance. 7 23/23 Oribe Peralta With the weight of a nation’s expectations on his shoulders, Mexico’s Mr. Reliable failed to live up to his billing. 6 1/23 Jasper Cillessen Looked nervous in the early stages but stood up firm when called upon. Very little he could have done about Giovani dos Santos’ wonder strike. 7 Getty Images 2/23 Paul Verhaegh Did the unglamorous, but essential, job of mopping up after any Dutch mistakes in front of the backline. A composed and measured performance from right-back. 7 Getty Images 3/23 Daley Blind Raced forward wherever possible but lacked the desire to get back when needed. Appeared complacent with Dirk Kuyt as cover. 6 Getty Images 4/23 Ron Vlaar The Aston Villa man delivered a typically stern and imposing performance. Did very little wrong and posed a threat from set-plays. 7 Getty Images 5/23 Bruno Martins Indi Replaced Nigel de Jong after just nine minutes and delivered a combative and committed display. 7 Getty Images 6/23 Stefan de Vrij Desperately unlucky not to have scored, forcing Guillermo Ochoa into a stunning second-half save, but kept his head up and delivered a good shift. 7 Getty Images 7/23 Georginio Wijnaldum The PSV starlet was muzzled for much of the first half but found more joy in the second. Ran at the Mexico defence to some success. 7 Getty Images 8/23 Dirk Kuyt Playing more defensively than British audiences will have been expecting, after featuring in attack for Liverpool, Dirk Kuyt delivered an impressive shift. Never stopped running on his 100th cap. 7 Getty Images 9/23 Wesley Sneijder Will be remembered for the bullet finish which got the Netherlands back into the game. Had a quiet game though which, like his tournament as a whole, lacked penetration. 6 Getty Images 10/23 Arjen Robben Eventually won his side a penalty after many failed attempts at allegedly deceiving the referee. Had one decent shout in the first half. The Bayern Munich man was tireless, however, and never gave up in his pursuit of a goal. 7 Getty Images 11/23 Robin van Persie Despite the expectations on his shoulders, this was a decidedly quiet afternoon from the Manchester United striker. Was substituted for Klaas-Jan Huntelaar who ultimately won the game. 6 Getty Images 12/23 Klaas Jan Huntelaar Despite only being on the pitch for little over fifteen minutes, the Schalke striker made his mark. Scoring the penalty which won Netherlands the game, Huntelaar was confident enough in his own abilities to take the spot-kick. 8 Getty Images 13/23 Ochoa.jpg A stunning display defaced by two late, unstoppable, goals. After brilliantly saving Stefan de Vrij’s point blank effort, it was clear that it would take quite a strike to get past Ochoa tonight. Lightning struck twice. 8 14/23 Paul Aguilar Striving to get forward, while remaining wary of the Dutch counter attack, this was a decent if unremarkable outing for Paul Aguilar. 6.5 15/23 Rafael Marquez After earning many plaudits over an illustrious career, the former Barcelona centre-back had an afternoon to forget. Clumsily bundling into every Dutch attacker in sight, it’s no great surprise that he gave away the late penalty. 5 16/23 Francisco Rodriguez An excellent first half display wasn’t built upon and Francisco Rodriguez ultimately struggled to handle the Netherlands’ attacking prowess in the final stages. The heat will surely have been a factor. 7 17/23 Miguel Layun Began the game by showcasing his abilities to shoot from distance but rightfully opted to shift his focus towards firing crosses into the Dutch area. Cutting inside dangerously, this was an impressive performance. 7 18/23 Carlos Salcido With a frightening ability to shoot from distance, Carlos Salcido will perhaps wonder if he could have contributed more. 6 19/23 Hector Moreno Standing up to the Netherlands attack for much of tonight’s game, Hector Moreno will be bitterly disappointed to have been part of a defence which conceded two late goals. 6.5 20/23 Hector Herrera Tried to join the Mexican strikeforce whenever possible but was understandably nervous about leaving the door open behind him. A mature, if unadventurous, display. 7 21/23 Andres Guardado Was occasionally isolated on the left flank and struggled to create chances with such little cover. Unlucky not to have scored with a long-range effort in the second half. 6.5 22/23 Giovani Dos Santos Scoring a stunning goal to set Mexico up for an unlikely victory, the former Tottenham Hotspur man was a delight to watch. A regular thorn in the Netherlands’ side, this was an exciting performance. 7 23/23 Oribe Peralta With the weight of a nation’s expectations on his shoulders, Mexico’s Mr. Reliable failed to live up to his billing. 6

Robben was perhaps remembering the 2012 European Cup final, where he had won a second-half penalty against Chelsea, took the kick himself and saw it saved by Petr Cech.

Nevertheless, Van Gaal will back himself to win the quarter-final in Salvador, although when he spoke he did not know whether he would be facing Costa Rica or Greece. However, he admitted to using the water breaks to reorganise his team from a 3-5-2 into a 4-3-3. This is outside the spirit of the water breaks but demonstrates the kind of cunning in which Van Gaal specialises.

“The players showed they have the belief to fight through to the end,” he said. “Let me tell you that the Dutch media thought we would never survive the first round and so how we are suddenly favourites to qualify for the semis is something I have difficulty imagining. But with the team spirit that brought us this victory I think we will be very difficult to beat.”

Video: Netherlands vs Mexico match report

That the spectacular equaliser was scored by Wesley Sneijder was, Van Gaal thought, significant. “It is not a surprise because he is one of the fittest players in the Dutch team, certainly he is the one that runs the longest and the hardest,” the manager said.

“But it will be difficult to imagine Nigel de Jong, who broke down with a groin injury, being fit in time for the quarter-finals. Bringing off Robin van Persie was purely tactical. This is a coach who wants to win tournaments and to do that I have to make changes.”

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