Bulgaria surprised the Netherlands 2-1 on Saturday
A Friendly that showed the World Cup runner-up is struggling to find its trademark fluency ahead of the European Championship.
Substitute Ilian Micanski scored the winning header in injury time. Robin van Persie gave the Netherlands the lead on the stroke of halftime, running onto a pass over the Bulgaria defense by Wesley Sneijder and volleying home with his left foot for his 26th international goal.
Valeri Bojinov went close to giving Bulgaria a shock lead five minutes from the break when he beat goalkeeper Tim Krul with a curling left-foot free kick only to see the ball slam into the bar. The close call appeared to shake the Netherlands into life and Van Persie's clinical finish put the Netherlands ahead seconds later.
But a contentious handball call after the break against Van der Vaart let Popov level the score from the penalty spot. Coach Bert van Marwijk began with English Premier League top scorer Van Persie on the right flank and Bundesliga top scorer Klaas-Jan Huntelaar at center forward but the potentially lethal pairing failed to threaten the packed Bulgaria defense early on.
Van Marwijk also gave a starting spot to 18-year-old debutant Jetro Willems at left back, making him the second-youngest Dutch international after Gerald Vanenburg in 1982. Willems was replaced by Stijn Schaars after just over an hour, as Van Marwijk continued to hunt for his best option on the left of his defense.
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