Men's Hockey Pro League 2020: 3 teams with the best attack

India's counterattacking skills are feared the world over
India's counterattacking skills are feared the world over

#2 The Netherlands

The Dutch strikers in action in the Pro League 2019
The Dutch strikers in action in the Pro League 2019

Few attacks in the world of hockey look as menacing as the Dutch forays with men advancing upfield in numbers and sprinting in from both flanks before delivering deft through-balls that beat the defence all ends up but manage to find a lone unmarked teammate in the attacking circle.

Imagine then, the nightmarish dilemma that the best goalkeepers face when two Dutchmen lurk in the vicinity of the post with one directing a scathing shot goalwards while another lies in wait to direct the deflection home.

Mirco Pruyser has the uncanny knack of positioning himself at a spot in the striking circle where the ball more often than not seems to find his outstretched stick inches in front of the post while Jeroen Hertzberger, Bjorn Kellerman, Bob de Voogd, and Valentin Verga cause havoc in and around the opposition 23-meter line.

Max Caldas' side seems to have an unlimited stream of talent coming to the fore, which only adds to the potency of the attacks and the Netherlands strikers will be on the watch list of quite a few think tanks when the Pro League 2020 gets underway.

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