ROTTERDAM, Netherlands -- Robin van Persie scored his second goal in as many pre-World Cup friendlies as the Netherlands beat Ghana 1-0 on Saturday. Brice McCain Jersey . On the day Louis van Gaal announced his final 23-man squad for Brazil, the Netherlands coach looked to have picked his strongest side for the match at Feyenoords De Kuip stadium, with the vastly experienced striking partnership of Van Persie and Arjen Robben fed by playmaker Wesley Sneijder. It was that trio who teamed up to unlock the Ghana defence in just the fifth minute. Sneijder played a one-two with Robben and then cut back the ball past the advancing goalkeeper to Van Persie who only had to tap into the open goal for his 43rd international goal. Robben should have doubled the lead seven minutes later but scuffed a close-range shot over the bar after a cross from left back Daley Blind set him free in front of goal at the end of a flowing attack. The Bayern Munich winger squandered another great chance when goalkeeper Adam Kwarasey blocked his shot when Robben was again on his own in front of goal after a cross from right back Daryl Janmaat. "I should have scored two. Im saving them up," Robben said. Both final passes came from backs functioning almost as wingers in Van Gaals new 5-3-2 formation. The defenders -- seen by many as the teams Achilles heel -- also ensured Jasper Cillessen kept a clean sheet. "In the second half, we created less but we gave away absolutely nothing," Van Gaal said. Ghana, which has a tough draw in Brazil together with Germany, Portugal and the United States in Group G, never looked like breaking down the Dutch back five. Coach James Kwesi Appiahs team stayed in the game thanks to Robbens misses and aggressive tackling and pressure that broke up the fluency of Dutch build-up play. "Ghana pinned us back and that makes it difficult," Van Gaal said. But he expects the attacking fluency to come as the squad continues to train together. "It will get better," Van Gaal said. "Weve only just started." The Netherlands plays Wales on Wednesday in Amsterdam and flies to Rio de Janeiro the following day. It is in Group B with Spain, Chile and Australia. Austin Johnson Jersey . -- Theres been so much talk about Mike Moustakas at the plate that the third baseman ignored the conversation Wednesday -- even after doing something positive. Jayon Brown Jersey . And on Sunday against the Houston Astros they were pleased to see his work finally pay off with his first win since May 24. http://www.titansstoreonline.com/Black-75-Daquan-Jones-Womens-Jersey/ . "Weve given ourselves now a tougher task," said Carlyle after the Friday practice, the Toronto head coach notably chipper and upbeat throughout. "But the bottom line is we just have to win our share of games [and] not worry about what anybody else is doing.LONDON - Fresh from a straight-sets loss to one of the games all-time greats, it was difficult for Canadas Milos Raonic to look at the positives from his performance at Wimbledon this year. He made it to the semifinals at the All England Club for the first time and was two wins away from becoming the first Canadian to win a Grand Slam mens singles title. However, his effort Friday against Roger Federer left him disappointed. The Swiss star broke Raonic in the first game en route to a comfortable 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 victory. "Looking at the big picture, the last two weeks have been in a lot of ways very successful," Raonic said. "I won consecutive matches and put myself into position of the final four here. There are a lot of good things to take from it. "If you had asked before the start would I sign to make the semis, I would have signed. But when you get to this point the greed of human nature takes over. You want so much more and theres nothing wrong with that." Raonic, from Thornhill, Ont., appeared nervous at the start of his first Grand Slam semifinal appearance, on the showcase centre court to boot. Federer, a seven-time Wimbledon champion, looked as relaxed as ever. Federer, who owns 17 major titles, broke once in each set and won 61 of 80 points on serve to make it back to a Slam final for the first time since winning Wimbledon in 2012. "I know I can do better," Raonic said. "I was not expecting to play my best, but I was expecting much better. I didnt deal with the situation well today, thats what I can learn from if I reach this situation again. "The worst would be to feel the same way as I do right now." Federer will play Novak Djokovic of Serbia for the mens crown on Sunday. Djokovic, the top seed, ran off six of the final seven points in the tiebreaker to beat Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (2), 7-6 (7) to advance to his third Wimbledon final in four years. Eugenie Bouchard of Westmount, Que., will play Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic in the womens final on Saturday. Bouchard hopes to become the first Canadian womens singles player to win a Grand Slam title. In addition, Vancouvers Vasek Pospisil and American Jack Sock will play Bob and Mike Bryan of the United States in the mens doubles final. And defending mixed doubles champions Daniel Nestor of Toronto and French partner Kristina Mladenovic will take on Max Mirnyi of Belarus and Hao-Ching Chan of Taiwan in semifinal play. Federers dominance against the eighth-seeded Raonic was total. Raonic had 17 aces but also had four double faults and conceded seven break points. Federer was clinical throughout and saved the only break point he faced. "I didnt put in the serves that I needed," Raonic said. "I usually serve better, but he came with the right shots every single time. He hit returns that didnt allow me to get into the match." Before this tournament, the last Canadian to reach a singles semifinal at a major was Robert Powell at Wimbledon in 1908, according to Tennis Canada. Montreal native Greg Rusedski reached the U.S. Open final in 1997 but he was representing Great Britain at that time. Raonic will rise three positions to a career-best ranking of No. 6 when the new ATP rankings are released Monday. He had not been past the second round in each of his three previous appearances at Wimbledon. "I would havee liked to have had more experience on centre court before the semifinals," Raonic said. Jack Conklin Jersey. "But it was not the physical things that bothered me. It was knowing the opportunities that lie ahead. I put too much pressure on myself." It will be Djokovics 14th Grand Slam final — and 10th in his last 13 majors. Djokovic won the 2011 Wimbledon title and lost in last years final to Andy Murray. The 32-year-old Federer will be playing in his ninth Wimbledon final. If he wins, he will hold the outright record for mens titles, which he currently shares at seven with Pete Sampras and William Renshaw. Federer would also become the oldest mens Wimbledon champion since the Open era began in 1968. The Swiss great has slipped in the rankings the past two years and failed to get to any Grand Slam finals. This could represent his best chance for another major title. Federer, who has lost only one set and been broken just once the whole tournament, was asked how much it would mean to lift the Wimbledon trophy once more. "A lot," he said. "I must say Im unbelievably proud every time I can walk the grounds here and keep on playing this tournament. I know I dont have 10 left, so Ill try to enjoy it as much as I can. Clearly, the first one was unbelievably special in 2003. "And that I was able to play so successful for so many years here at Wimbledon has been an unbelievable thrill and that I get another chance to go through these kind of emotions is great." Federer holds a career 18-16 advantage against Djokovic, but this will be only their second meeting in a major final. Federer beat him for the U.S. Open title in 2007. Overall, Federer has a 6-5 edge in Grand Slam matches. Theyve faced each other only once before at Wimbledon, with Federer winning in four sets in the 2012 semifinals. "We know each others games," said Djokovic, who will move to No. 1 in the rankings with a victory, replacing Rafael Nadal. "We played many matches on different occasions. We played so many times in semifinals and finals of Grand Slams, different surfaces, big matches over the years. They were very exciting. "And, of course, most of the matches we play against each other went the distance. So Im going to be, of course, physically ready and fit to go the distance this time." The final matchup means that one of the so-called "Big Four" in mens tennis — Federer, Nadal, Djokovic or Andy Murray — will walk away with a Grand Slam trophy for the 36th time in 38 majors. One of the four has won Wimbledon title the past 11 years, seven for Federer. Djokovic, who has lost in his last two major finals and three of the past four, is going for his seventh Grand Slam title. "Of course, there is plenty of motivation from my side to win this Grand Slam final after losing last three out of four," he said. "I want to try to get the title. It would mean a lot mentally for me." The 11th-seeded Dimitrov, with his girlfriend Maria Sharapova watching from his guest box on Centre Court, came in with a 10-match winning streak and had been seeking to become the first Bulgarian to advance to a major final. He pushed Djokovic to the limit but hurt his chances with eight double-faults — including three in a row in one game. ——— With files from The Associated Press. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '