\n<\/p>\n
Some 18 players in the squad have represented the Netherlands at youth levels, with two – Riechedly Bazoer and Joshua Brenet – winning senior caps.<\/p>\n
The shift from the Curacao national team, from local amateur players to members of the diaspora, started when they started to hire big-name Dutch managers – starting with Patrick Kluivert in 2015.<\/p>\n
Miami FC goalkeeper Eloy Room, 37, was the first member of this squad to play for Curacao that year, with ex-Aston Villa and Cardiff midfielder Leandro Bacuna among those to follow in 2016.<\/p>\n
Bacuna said: “We’ve done something so nice for Curacao. I started this journey 10 years ago and wanted to make the people from Curacao proud. <\/p>\n
“The manager keeps saying we are not finished. We want to show people as small as we are, we have a big heart. If you have a big heart I believe you can get far.”<\/p>\n
His brother Juninho, who has played for Huddersfield, Rangers and Birmingham, followed in 2019.<\/p>\n
The 28-year-old told the BBC: “It’s one thing that we always wished for – when we were kids we dreamed of playing together in one team on one pitch. <\/p>\n
“That’s why I decided early on to play for Curacao so I could be with him in one team, make my parents proud, make the island proud.”<\/p>\n
The biggest influx of Dutch-born talent has taken place quite recently, with 15 of this squad making their debut since 2023.<\/p>\n
That includes Chong, who represented the Netherlands up to under-21 level before switching to Curacao last year.<\/p>\n
“We’ve got a lot of players that have been playing in Holland that never thought about playing for Curacao,” continued Juninho Bacuna.<\/p>\n
“But you can see the heart, the belief and the connection they have with Curacao. <\/p>\n
“They feel the love from the people, they feel everything from the island, so the connection got stronger and stronger for them.”<\/p>\n
In other countries, it may be more of an issue not calling up many local players.<\/p>\n
But the importance placed in Curacao’s diaspora in the Netherlands – which is roughly the same population as the island – makes this different.<\/p>\n
“I don’t think it’s an issue whatsoever,” said Curacao native Boudino de Jong, the co-founder of Profound, who are the FFK’s digital partners.<\/p>\n
“We’re very used to our diaspora also being outside the island. So that’s not necessarily a factor in how we would identify ourselves. Even if a player is not born here, they feel an extreme connection and identify as Curacaoan.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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