The Dutch national team has been criticized after Wednesday evening’s somewhat disappointing 1-1 draw against Norway. There is surprise, among other things, about the freedom that Erling Braut Haaland sometimes got from the defenders of the Dutch. Louis van Gaal had warned his men in advance of the great danger in the Norwegian vanguard, but Virgil van Dijk and associates nevertheless had the greatest difficulty with the physically strong attacker.
“Although fame had preceded the wonderboy of Borussia Dortmund, the Dutch internationals did too little with all the advance warnings. And also the advice of national coach Van Gaal to prevent the supply to the power person, did not seem to be spent on Virgil van Dijk and co,” writes Valentijn Driessen in his contribution. The Telegraph. Stefan de Vrij also had a lot of trouble with the tall striker. “Already in the third minute, the Norwegian striker showed the central defense duo Van Dijk- Stefan de Vrij.“
the Dutch on report: almost half of the players score insufficiently
The report figures of Voetbalzone van Oranje.
Driessen also looks at Steven Berghuis’ performance in Oslo with a critical eye. “His starting position at the Dutch should have been an impulse for him in this difficult phase of his career. Since his transfer to Ajax, he has not been a shadow of the Feyenoord player Berghuis”, is the hard conclusion of the football chief. “Although he has now ended up on the bench in Amsterdam, he gained the confidence of national coach Van Gaal. After 45 minutes, however, he was allowed to push in and made way for Donyell Malen,” said Driessen.
According to the General Newspaper As a self-proclaimed ‘slow starter’, Van Gaal has started his third employment as national coach of the Dutch in style. “In and against Norway, the the Dutch had possession of the ball, but no conviction at all. Lucky for us: Turkey’s biggest competitor didn’t win either”, is the reference to the 2-2 draw of the Turks against Montenegro. The face of Memphis Depay told the story of the World Cup qualifier in Oslo. “It was the final phase of the game, and another attack stranded before the ball had even reached the the Dutch striker’s mouth. Even a final offensive was not really possible on the first night of the Louis III era. With 1-1, the the Dutch suffered the second loss of points in four matches in the World Cup qualification, after there was already the painful 4-2 defeat in Turkey in March.“
Van Hooijdonk judges harshly after Norway – Netherlands: ‘He played badly’
The analyst found an the Dutch international fell through the ice against the Norwegians.
According to Willem Vissers of de Volkskrant still has a talented generation, despite the failed European Championship this summer. “The question remains whether Van Gaal will see that until the World Cup. He is 70 years old and has really started his last trick, in which he wants to merge all lessons and wisdom.” Vissers already saw a big difference with the situation a few months ago, when Frank de Boer still held sway. “Anyway in terms of game system, but also in terms of intention and team strength. A backlog did not lead to a hopeless exercise. That’s not just because of Van Gaal.”
“Captain Virgil van Dijk is back, the leader on and off the field, the boss who shows his men their place, who put his finger back in the bowl shortly after the break and who is always there, no matter how difficult he had it with Haaland and however much match rhythm he lacks”, the Liverpool defender gets a compliment for his performance on Norwegian soil. Fidelity thinks that the Dutch national team is in good hands with Van Gaal, although it is also known that the now seventy-year-old coach cannot do magic.
“It turned out last night that even Van Gaal is not a miracle doctor who immediately administers the right medicine. It was not the Netherlands’ fault and combativeness; it certainly came to the fore in the second half. But in the end, the Netherlands lacked the creativity and the qualities to demolish the red Norwegian wall.” For the the Dutch there are now two home games on the program: Saturday against Montenegro and Tuesday against Turkey.