Zlatan Ibrahimovic blames Netherlands defeat entirely on one man in most brutal analysis of World Cup so far

An "angry" Zlatan Ibrahimovic has pointed the finger at one man after the Netherlands were eliminated from the World Cup following a dramatic penalty shoot-out defeat to Morocco.

Morocco secured their spot in the last 16 after beating Ronald Koeman's side on penalties following a 1-1 draw.

An emotional Cody Gakpo gave the Oranje a narrow lead in the 72nd minute but after a defensive lapse, Issa Diop headed home in the 91st minute to send Monday's game in Mexico to extra-time.

It was one-way traffic from that moment onwards. In fact, the Netherlands recorded just 35 per cent possession against Morocco after deploying a low block for much of the game.

Bart Verbruggen managed to keep Koeman's men in the contest with a great save from Soufiane Rahimi's effort but eventually, they were eliminated when Ismael Saibari scored the winning penalty.

Players of Morocco dash after Ismael Saibari scores the team's winning penalty against the Netherlands. Image credit: Getty

Speaking in his post-match analysis of the game, a far-from-impressed Zlatan Ibrahimovic placed the blame entirely on head coach Ronald Koeman.

"This defeat is Koeman's fault, because I didn't recognise this Dutch team. He lost with an identity that is not the Dutch identity. That makes me angry," he said on FOX Sports, as per VI.

"I was always taught: attack, attack, attack. This is not the Dutch identity. Today, Koeman looked like an Italian coach playing not to lose, whereas the Netherlands always plays to win. If you lose, at least lose with your own identity and don't change it.

"This was not the Netherlands I am used to seeing. You can also tell by the way they played that they didn't feel comfortable. The possession was gone, the attacking football was gone. It just looked very bad, and that was all Koeman's fault.

"I thought it was absolutely nothing, really nothing at all."

Thierry Henry gives his take on Ronald Koeman after the Netherlands' World Cup exit

Henry, who was on punditry duty alongside Ibrahimovic, also expressed his surprise by Koeman's tactics after he opted to play a 5-4-1 formation.

"You take off a midfielder to bring on a defender. By doing so, you are basically saying that you are afraid of Morocco. That is allowed, of course. If you win, you are right. If you lose, you are wrong," he said.

"I was really surprised, because the Netherlands normally doesn't play like that. But Koeman clearly had a different view on that."

Koeman deployed a defensive approach to the round of 32 clash with Morocco. Image credit: Getty

Ronald Koeman defends tactical decision following defeat to Morocco

Despite widespread criticism of his tactical approach, Koeman felt deploying a back five was the right call.

“With this defensive approach, we gave ‌away much less than we did during the (group) ⁠matches," he said.

"That was positive, but also we were less offensive. You can think of the tactics whatever you like, but we ​gave away much less against a team much stronger than Sweden and Tunisia. And if I had to do it again, I would ⁠do it the same ​way again.

“I also know that if Morocco hadn’t equalised with that late goal, there would be all sorts of compliments for me as the Dutch coach, but now, probably, I'm going to be scolded for the ‌fact that I chose five defenders, but once again, I believe it was necessary.”