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The venue of the friendly match between Bulgaria and Netherlands on May 26 has not been picked yet. File photo by Sofia Photo Agency
Bulgaria will face the Netherlands in a friendly on May 26, turning thus into one of the last rivals the tulips will clash with before the Euro 2012 finals in Poland and Ukraine.
The venue of the match has not been picked yet.
The Dutch team had tough luck during the draw of its rivals in the European Championship. Led by Bert van Marwijk, the Netherlands will face their arch enemies from Germany, Portugal and Denmark in Group B.
Bulgaria's national team is in deep crisis, its dismal performance in the Euro 2012 qualifiers being the main reason behind the massive collapse. The Balkan squad finished last in its qualifying group with just 5 points.
It will use the game against the Netherlands as preparation for the 2014 World Cup qualifying programme. Its qualification group for the 2014 World Cup is extremely tough and contains Italy, Denmark, Czech Republic, Armenia and Malta.
Bulgaria's international football squad collapsed at the end of November to the 85th place in the FIFA World Ranking, a historical new low in its headlong fall over the last year.
The squad that reached the historically high 8th spot back in 1995 is now lagging behind the likes of Haiti, Cape Verde Islands, Antigua and Barbuda.
The situation can become even worse and the team may get kicked out of the top 100 teams in the world before the new coach Lyuboslav Penev makes his debut in February in a clash against Hungary.
Lyuboslav Penev, the nephew of Bulgaria's most successful football manager in history, was officially appointed as national coach at the beginning of November.
Penev, a former prolific striker who used to play for Spanish sides Valencia, Atletico Madrid, Compostela and Celta Vigo, has signed a two-year contract with the option to extend it for two more years.
Penev, the former coach of Bulgarian champions Litex, is expected to bring some "fresh blood" into the squad.
The country's greatest football success was in 1994 when its team reached the World Cup semifinals under the management of Lyuboslav Penev's uncle, Dimitar Penev.
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