and Mexico. In the semi-final against Brazil, the match went to a penalty shoot-out. Cocu took the third Dutch penalty, but his attempt was saved by Cláudio Taffarel. The Netherlands eventually lost the shoot-out (4–2) and missed out on the final. Cocu and the Netherlands were present at Euro 2000 after automatically qualifying as a host. The Dutch side, with Cocu in all fixtures, won all group matches and the quarter-final against Yugoslavia. Still, Cocu and the team were again eliminated after a penalty shoot-out in the semi-finals, this time against Italy. The Netherlands and Cocu failed to qualify for the 2002 World Cup in a qualification group with Portugal and the Republic of Ireland. In 2003, Cocu received his first international sending-off in a friendly match against Belgium. The Netherlands did well in the Euro 2004 qualifiers, with Cocu scoring twice (both in separate matches against Austria). During Euro 2004, Cocu was chosen as team captain and appeared in all matches. In the quarter-finals against Sweden, he missed a penalty in the shoot-out, but the Netherlands still managed to win. In the semi-finals, the team was eliminated by hosts Portugal. After Euro 2004, Cocu lost the captain role to Edgar Davids, a decision made by new manager Marco van Basten. The Netherlands qualified for the 2006 World Cup, with Cocu scoring three times in the qualifying matches. Cocu was a first-team member in most games, but a sending-off against Andorra in September 2005 meant that Cocu missed the last two qualifiers. At the World Cup, the Netherlands progressed from the group stage, but were knocked out by Portugal in the second round, with Cocu coming close to equalizing by hitting the crossbar shortly after the start of the second half. After the tournament, Cocu retired from international football. With 101 caps for the Netherlands, Cocu is currently ranked fifth in the list of most Dutch international appearances. He was granted a farewell and a golden plaque for his services before the match against Belarus in September 2006. In 2011, Cocu was named bondsridder of the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB), an honorary title for his service to Dutch football. Managerial career PSV Eindhoven After Cocu's return from the UAE in 2008, he showed interest in becoming a football coach. He joined the professional football coach course in order to achieve the necessary coaching badges and returned to PSV to