The Netherlands will look to secure qualification when they host the Republic of Ireland on Saturday. With 12 points, Ronald Koeman’s team is in second place in the sector. The Boys in Green are still hoping to make the playoffs despite having already lost out of the top two.
Preview (Netherlands vs. Republic of Ireland)
The Oranje have two games left, and as France sails off into the German sunset, their destiny is entirely in their control. As group winners, they have already guaranteed a spot at Euro 2024. In a two-horse race for the last qualifying spot, Greece and the Netherlands will compete. Against Les Bleus, Koeman’s team was unable to compete in their doubleheader match. Out of their last five Group B games, the Netherlands has won four of them. Some of them might have missed last month’s game against Greece, though.
Weghorst was denied by Nottingham Forest’s Odysseas Vlachodimos, defusing the Netherlands’ hopes once more from the spot in Athens. But Virgil van Dijk, the captain and an unusual 12-yard source, made no errors with his last-gasp penalty three minutes into injury time in the second half, sending his nation flying past Greece and into second place. They are ahead in their head-to-head record versus Greece and have the game in hand. If Koeman’s squad wins against the Irish, they will secure a top-two finish. They have a game coming up against Gibraltar, who are currently at the bottom of the standings.
Even in the most unlikely scenario, which would need the Netherlands to lose two games and Greece to defeat France by at least one point the following week, Koeman’s team still has the safety net of a playoff spot, which may or may not materialize for their upcoming visitors. The Republic of Ireland might still qualify for a third Euros since 2012. This is even though Stephen Kenny’s team has only managed to pick up six of the 21 points available.
Team News
The Netherlands, like many of their European competitors, have had to make a few changes to deal with the November injury wave. Ajax strikers Brian Brobbey and Steven Bergwijn, as well as Manchester City’s Nathan Ake, have withdrawn from the team. In place of the latter two, uncapped Toulouse attacker Thijs Dallinga has received his first call-up. Alongside 17-year-old Ajax defender Jarrel Hato, who stated he was “completely surprised” by his selection, Dallinga is one of two players in the ranks aiming for their first senior Dutch debut.
Bart Verbruggen has been confirmed as Koeman’s first-choice goalkeeper for the national team. He shares the gloves with Jason Steele at Brighton & Hove Albion. Daley Blind might earn his 104th cap to tie Dirk Kuyt for sixth place on the all-time Oranje rankings. Although Kenny has acknowledged that all of Ferguson, Will Smallbone, Chiedozie Ogbene, and Jamie McGrath are questionable for Ireland’s last group match, the team has not yet lost any players to injury.
Due to a back problem, Ferguson was unable to play in Brighton’s most recent tie with Sheffield United. However, Kenny has said that the young striker is trying to be ready for Saturday’s match, where he will try to score past Seagulls teammate Verbruggen rather than shielding him. The lone player without a cap for the visiting team is Andrew Moran, a twenty-year-old midfielder for Blackburn Rovers, but Jason Molumby is a better bet to start in midfield if McGrath and Smallbone are deemed unfit.
Netherlands 2 – 0 Republic of Ireland
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