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Netherlands coach Danny Blind denied his side were affected by the emotion of their farewell to Johan Cruyff as they lost 3-2 to France. The teams and the Amsterdam Arena crowd shared in a minute's silence before kick-off for the victims of this week's terror attack in Brussels and then, 14 minutes into the game, a minute's applause for Cruyff -- Netherlands' former No. 14, who this week died from cancer aged 68. By that time, Antoine Griezmann's free kick and Olivier Giroud's goal had France 2-0 up but Blind told SBS6: "I'm not going to blame that. Once the whistle goes, you have to be ready like a pro. "We were unfortunate with the first goal. The second goal, we did not do well." The hosts went on to stage a second-half comeback as Luuk de Jong netted in the 47th minute -- with his arm, replays suggested -- and substitute Ibrahim Afellay levelled with four minutes to go. But two minutes after the equaliser, Blaise Matuidi's slotted finish ensured France would claim victory. Blind continued: "We learned a lot. I can live with a defeat, because in many facets of the game they are beyond us. "But it's disappointing that we could not get the 2-2 draw, though that would perhaps not have been deserved." Striker Davy Klaassen was frustrated not to have earned his side a point, but admitted honouring Cruyff was more important than the friendly clash. Klaassen told Fox Sports: "The last of my three shots was a free shooting opportunity. I was expecting Ibrahim [Afellay] to shoot, but I have to do better with it. "It is a shame that we lost, but above all it was a nice tribute to Johan Cruyff."
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