following return from
Argentina in 1978 Rensenbrink made his international debut for the
Netherlands national football team against
Scotland in 1968, but picked up relatively few caps due to competition for the forward positions with
Johan Cruijff and
Piet Keizer. However,
Rinus Michels included him for the
1974 FIFA World Cup squad that made the short trip to
West Germany. The Dutch side that took part in the
1974 FIFA World Cup were the pinnacle of
Total Football. Most of the 1974 team were made up of players from
AFC Ajax and
Feyenoord, so Rensenbrink was an outsider and was unfamiliar with playing the system. His preferred position was up front on the left, but that position was already
Johan Cruijff's domain, so he played on the left-wing position in midfield, taking over from Ajax player
Piet Keizer. He missed one game in the tournament (when Keizer played instead) and was only half-fit for the final after picking up an injury during the semi-final against
Brazil. Rinus Michels gambled on Rensenbrink's fitness and played him from start – however he only lasted until half-time and was replaced by
René van de Kerkhof. The Netherlands took an early lead through a
Johan Neeskens penalty, but goals from
Paul Breitner and
Gerd Müller gave
West Germany a 2–1 victory. Rensenbrink's performances saw him named to the team of the tournament and he was sought by Ajax as a replacement for Keizer. However, contract negotiations fell through and he remained at Anderlecht. Rensenbrink stayed in the
Netherlands national team during the qualifiers and finals of the
1976 European Football Championship. However, the Netherlands fell at the semi-final stage to
Czechoslovakia. In the
1978 FIFA World Cup tournament in
Argentina, the Netherlands again reached the final, but this time without Cruijff (who decided to retire from international football) and under the guidance of
Ernst Happel rather than Michels. Out of the shadow of Cruijff, Rensenbrink found more room to showcase his own considerable talent, playing on the left-hand side of a front three alongside
Johnny Rep and
René van de Kerkhof. He scored a
hat-trick in the opening game against
Iran, a penalty against
Scotland which was goal number 1,000 in
FIFA World Cup history and another spot-kick in the 5–1 win over
Austria. In the final against
Argentina, the Netherlands yet again met the hosts. The Netherlands fell behind to a first-half
Mario Kempes strike. After
Dick Nanninga's equalizer nine minutes from time, a long pass from the Dutch captain
Ruud Krol in the last 30 seconds of normal time gave Rensenbrink a half-chance, but his shot from a very narrow angle hit the post and was cleared by a defender. Had he scored, it is almost certain that the Netherlands would have won the World Cup with Rensenbrink being top goal scorer. Argentina scored twice in extra-time for a 3–1 victory and the Netherlands again had to settle for the runners-up spot. Rensenbrink played some of the qualifiers for
Euro 80, but after earning his 46th cap in 1979 (a 2–0 defeat by Poland in a qualifier for
Euro 80), he retired from international football at the age of 32, having scored 14 times for his country. He along with
Eusébio are the only players to score the most goals from a penalty spot in a tournament (4 in 1978). He was named by
Pelé as one of the
top 125 greatest living footballers in March 2004. He was also named
Anderlecht's greatest ever foreign player in 2008. == Personal life ==