Van Persie and Afellay enjoy Dutch drama

• "It was a bizarre evening," says Robin van Persie of Netherlands win
• Ibrahim Afellay calls his comeback game one "I will never forget"
• Klaas-Jan Huntelaar pleased to make an impact from the bench
• Ilia Vorotnikov "a bit proud" that Kazakhstan led for so long
• Next games: Iceland v Netherlands, Kazakhstan v Czech Republic (Monday)

Robin van Persie, Netherlands forward
It was a bizarre evening. But congratulations to us, because we ended up with a good result and it was not easy at all.

Despite conceding the early goal, we kept on playing well and that gives me a really good feeling about this match. Now we can travel to Iceland in good spirits, and they are more of a footballing side than Kazakhstan, which might suit us better. I am especially happy for Ibi [Ibrahim Afellay]. I know [he has been out with a long-term injury], so to see him perform so well in this match makes me very happy.

Ibrahim Afellay, Netherlands midfielder
This is an evening I will never forget. I played an important part in three key moments [setting up the first goal, being fouled in the incident that led to Baurzhan Dzholchiyev's dismissal, and then scoring the Netherlands' second goal]. I have had a very tough time, so it's very nice to return with a game like this.

It didn't hit me during the match, but I realise even more now that you cannot always take your fitness for granted, and it helps me to enjoy training every day – knowing I get to to play in an atmosphere like this. Playing for the Netherlands again after two years gives me a lovely feeling, especially in such an important victory.

Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, Netherlands forward
If it was up to me, obviously I would start every game, but that decision is up to the coach. The important thing is always to be sharp and score when the opportunity arises. When the spaces are small, the crosses have to be good. I always want to score as quickly as possible, whether I am in the starting lineup or playing as a substitute. It was important to score fast, so there was still time to score a second.

Ilia Vorotnikov, Kazakhstan defender
It was a tough game. We had to defend for almost the whole match, and when Huntelaar came on, it got even harder. It is tough playing against so many good forwards, and with ten men it got tougher still. We had hope after taking the lead, but it is hard to defend for almost a whole match.

It gives us hope for our next game, though. We will be at home so we  have a better chance to win, but we will have to wait and see. All in all, we leave disappointed, since we were ahead for a long time but ended up losing 3-1. But we are also a bit proud, because this is the Netherlands – they play in final tournaments all the time and they reach finals. They have top, top players – a top team. So we have mixed feelings.