Holland court backdoor ticket

It is the end of the World Cup qualifying road for Holland in Arnhem on Saturday night. It might not, however, be the end of the World Cup for Louis van Gaal's side. Even a win against Andorra would leave Holland at least one point short of a play-off place in the group two table. A victory by Edgar Davids in the courts, though, could revive Dutch hopes of being in Japan and South Korea after all.

According to Voetbal International, the respected Dutch weekly magazine, Holland could be granted a wild card entry into the tournament if Davids succeeds with a proposed case against Fifa officials for the suspension he received after testing positive for nandrolone in March this year. The ban kept the Juventus midfielder out of Holland's crucial 1-0 defeat against Ireland in Dublin last month and – so the magazine claims – the Dutch football association, the Koninklijke Nederlandsche Voetbalbond, might then take action against the world governing body on the basis that van Gaal's side failed to qualify for the finals due toa game from which their vice-captain and pivotal player was unjustly precluded.

Ted van Leeuwen, the journalist who wrote the story, said: "Officially, nobody involved is prepared to talk about it but behind the scenes people are working on it. The fact is American lawyers could say Holland are losing $50m by not playing in the World Cup and they could try to get that money from individuals. The lawyers of Edgar Davids and Frank de Boer [who was also suspended for alleged nandrolone use] are looking at suing not just associations but also individuals who sit on sanctioning committees. They can block their bank accounts.

"It could be the trigger for major problems and to avoid those there might be some way found to give Holland a place in the World Cup. A wild card has been mentioned as a possibility, though we are a long way from that stage yet. First Davids must win his case."

The preparation of Davids' legal action has been delayed by the fact that his lawyer, Geer Linjs, happens to be based in New York, two blocks from the site of the World Trade Centre. Already, however, the former Ajax player has succeeded in reducing the ban imposed upon him by the Italian football association, the Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio, from eight months to five months and then to a single month. He returns to the Dutch side – the first to fail to qualify for a World Cup since 1986 – at Arnhem's Gelredome on Saturday.

Davids, who has always maintained his innocence, has failed to steer clear of trouble since resuming club duties with Juventus a fortnight ago. He was sent off in the Champions' League match against Celtic 11 days ago and was involved in a fight with David Balleri of Lecce last Sunday, an indiscretion that has earned him a two-match domestic ban.