Netherlands route to EURO 2024
The Netherlands qualified for the European Championships with second place in Group B. Koeman’s team had to suffer a bitter defeat in the opening match, where they were beaten 4-0 in the transfer game against France. The Orange were defeated again at home by Deschamps’ side 2-1 but won the rest of their group matches. Crucial was the victory in Greece in stoppage time thanks to a penalty scored by Virgil van Dijk.
Top scorers in EURO Qualifiers
The Orange’s top scorers, all with three goals, were Weghorst, Gakpo and Calvin Stengs. The latter scored a hat-trick in the Orange’s last match against Gibraltar and will not be part of the selection that will go to the European Championships.
The key players of this national team were Dumfries with five assists during the European qualifiers and Virgil van Dijk, who played all the matches of the round, confirming himself as the defensive leader with 50 balls recovered in total. The Netherlands had a difficult journey due to numerous injuries and it should be noted that Frenkie de Jong, a key player for Koeman, played only two matches in the entire qualifying campaign. Taking his place was Tijjani Reijnders, who put in an excellent performance with the Orange.
Style of play
The Netherlands have a style of play dedicated to ball possession and consolidating their idea of play in the opponent’s half. They tend to exchange the ball very often between the centre backs in order to find the right opening to serve the wing backs and go up the outside of the pitch. Once in the opponent’s half of the field, the wing backs play with the supporting midfielders and forwards to get to the cross. Koeman does not only favour this more compassed type of manoeuvre, but he also agrees to go more vertically and jump over the two central midfielders to get from the centre back to the supporting forwards with long throws to counter-attack thanks to the speed of his forwards.
Netherlands expected set piece takers for EURO 2024
- Penalty taker: Memphis
- Backup penalty takers: van Dijk, Weghorst, Gakpo
- Short range free kicks: Memphis, Koopmeiners
- Longer range set pieces: Koopmeiners, Veerman
- Corners: Memphis, Xavi, Koopmeiners, Veerman
- Areal threat from set pieces: van Dijk, Weghorst
Netherlands expected formation and line up for EURO 2024:
Expected formation: (3-4-2-1)
Expected lineup: Verbruggen, Geertruida – Van Dijk – Ake, Dumfries – Schouten – F. de Jong – Maatsen, Xavi – Gakpo, Memphis
Players to consider in EURO 2024 Fantasy
I expect a good amount of points during the debut match against Poland. Poland qualified for this European Championship at the last minute and appears to be the weakest team in the group, they also tend to concede too much to their opponents and the Netherlands have the quality to break through the opposing defense.
It is no mystery that van Dijk can be a good asset for any player’s fantasy team. The Liverpool captain provides defensive solidity and can also bring points for balls recovered. A player that should be kept in mind is Denzel Dumfries who is often involved in the Orange’s offensive actions and can bring many assists or even goals. Lastly, Gakpo is in good form and in the last international national team competition he amazed the world, so it might be a good choice to bet on him.
Among the names to be considered is definitely Memphis Depay. The former Manchester United and PSV player had many physical problems with Atletico Madrid, but in the national team he always knows how to galvanize. He averages a goal every two games with the Oranje and is also a candidate to take penalties and free kicks from short range. With 44 goals to his credit in the national team, he cannot be a name to be overlooked.
In terms of budget players, it can be considered a very interesting trio. Verbruggen will be the starting goalkeeper in all likelihood and Koeman seems to take a good look at the young Brighton defender. Another player who can surprise and play a starting chance is Ian Maatsen who is impressing everyone in the Champions League with Borussia Dortmund and is a strong candidate to oust Daley Blind from the left wingback role. Ultimately, Geertruida can be another budget player to bet on, as he is likely to start.
As for the youngsters, Xavi Simons has to be your pick. He has not yet made an assist or a goal in an Orange jersey, but the European Championship can be his consecration after a convincing year at RB Leipzig.
Some sources:
- EURO Qualifiers team stats: https://www.uefa.com/european-qualifiers/statistics/teams/
- EURO Qualifiers player stats: https://www.uefa.com/european-qualifiers/statistics/players/
- EURO 2024 Fantasy: https://gaming.uefa.com/en/eurofantasy/create-team
