Veteran Dutch coach Dick Advocaat, who led Curacao to their first World Cup qualification, has stepped down as manager months before the finals because of his daughter’s ill health.

The tiny island nation, a self-governing part of the Netherlands with a population of little more than 150,000, is the smallest country to qualify for football's premier showcase.

Dick Advocaat gets off to a winning start as the Netherlands keeps their slim hopes of qualifying for next year's World Cup alive with a 5-0 win over Luxembourg.

Dick Advocaat has been named coach of The Netherlands for a third time aiming to kick them into shape fast and save their World Cup hopes, with Ruud Gullit as assistant.