The Dutch side have not been spoken highly enough heading into this tournament in Germany.
Coming into the tournament they have won their last 7 out of their 9 games, these games include both Euro qualifiers and friendlies. The only team they have lost to is the current European champions France, they have lost twice to them in the qualifiers.
Their team includes Liverpool trio, Virgil Van Dijk, Cody Gakpo and young star Ryan Gravenberch, whilst also having Nathan Ake, Frankie De Jong, Memphis Depay and Georginio Wijnaldum. With a nation that have many world class players they have definitely not been spoken about enough with only a week until the tournament starts.
Their first game kicks off against Poland on the 16th of June. They are in Group D, which also consists of Austria and France; the Dutch are expected to come 2nd with 1st place coming to the nation that are the only team to beat them in 9 games.
Group D is definitely one of the hardest groups but Ronald Koeman’s side should not struggle getting out of it. The top 2 in Group D will go on to play a nation in either group E or F depending on their finish in the group and four of the six third place sides will also qualify.
Heading into the tournament the Dutch side are one of the highest scorers. They have scored 16 goals in 4 games with their number 9, Wout Weghorst getting 4 goals. It is not just their goals that are a huge talking point it’s also their defence, they have gone on to keep a clean sheet in 4 of their last 5 games with the only game they failed to was away against Germany in a friendly. Their average starting defence are captain Van Dijk, Micky Van de Ven, Ake and Feyenood player, Lutsharel Geertruida. A defence with many qualities.
Since the World Cup their main change is that their average age has dropped, their main issue then was not having many impactful players to bring off the bench. Now we are talking about bringing on; Gravenberch, Brian Brobbery, Donyell Malen and Jeremy Frimpong. They may be starting substitutes for The Netherlands but these players could all start for several nations. Wait and see how much on an impact these players will make through the tournament.
With the talent they have plus many world class players, could the trophy be lifted by their captain Van Dijk in Berlin this summer?
Comments