National coach Frank de Boer has changed course for the away match against Italy in the Nations League. The Dutch national team takes up a 5-3-2 system in Bergamo. Hans Kraay junior adds FOX Sports understand that De Boer has opted for this formation, but predicts that Stefan de Vrij might get into trouble as a result.

“That is allowed, he can now go back to what Koeman started with. Koeman once started with 5-3-2 and he liked that, until a friendly match in Italy ”, Kraay jr. Refers to the exhibition match between Italy and the Orange in 2018, which ended in 1-1. “Then it didn’t make sense anymore. Then it was said: “Okay, if we have such good center-backs, we can just play with two men in the center.” From then on it really started to run. Frank de Boer is desperate to achieve results for the nation, but also for himself. ”

Presenter Jan Joost van Gangelen wonders whether it is logical that De Boer has changed his formation. “If you’re in the situation he’s in, I think it’s quite logical,” the analyst replies. In the game of a month ago in Amsterdam, the Orange encountered many problems with the emerging left back Leonardo Spinazzola, who put right back Hans Hateboer together with Lorenzo Insigne in a two-against-one situation. Spinazzola is again the left back of Italy on Wednesday evening, while his teammate at AS Roma plays Lorenzo Pellegrini as left winger.

“Hateboer can now run into Spinazzola, because he is used to racing over a hundred meters. That has become a hundred meters runner. So he goes to Spinazzola. But the Italians just play with a left winger, so that means De Vrij comes to play as a kind of right back. That is the handicap for De Vrij ”, predicts Kraay. De Vrij, together with Nathan Aké and Virgil van Dijk, forms the three-man defense in the center, while Daley Blind and Hateboer are the wing defenders in De Boer’s team.