Netherlands host Bosnia & Herzegovina on Sunday in a must-win game for Oranje if they are to progress from their Nations League group. Kick-off is at 5 pm.
- Follow Football-Oranje on Twitter
It is tightly poised in Group 1 with Poland currently topping the group with seven points, while Italy have six and Netherlands five.
Netherlands can still reach the next round but wins over Bosnia and Herzegovina on Sunday and against Poland next Wednesday are required, while Italy have to slip up in one of their two games.
Frank de Boer is still waiting for his first win as Netherlands boss, with three draws and one loss in his opening four ties. He is is the first coach to go winless from his first four games in charge of the national team.
On Sunday, Netherlands should have defeated Spain in Amsterdam but squandered a number of late chances in a 1-1 draw. De Boer will be hoping his side can be more clinical against Bosnia & Herzegovina.
The visitors are not in good form at the moment. They sit bottom of the group with two points, and were defeated 2-0 at home to Iran in their most recent friendly international.
The reverse fixture finished 0-0 in Bosnia last month.
Team News
Nathan Ake dropped out of the squad after injuring his hamstring while Hans Hateboer is also a doubt after coming off against Spain. Teun Koopmeiners is also out.
De Boer stated he would make changes from the starting eleven that drew with Spain, with Tim Krul set to start in goal. Stefan de Vrij and Daley Blind are also likely to come into the eleven.
De Boer’s set to stick with Luuk de Jong through the middle with Memphis on the wing. Steven Berghuis is set to start on the right again.
Ryan Gravenberch and Sven Botman could make their Netherlands debuts.
Possible Netherlands line-up: Krul, Dumfries, Wijndal, De Vrij, Blind, Frenkie, Wijnaldum, Van de Beek, Berghuis, Memphis, L. De Jong
Bosnia are without Eden Dzeko after the striker tested positive for coronavirus, but star-man Miralem Pjanic is in the squad.
Possible Bosnia line-up: Piric, Corluka, Nastic, Kovacevic, Sanicanin, Loncar, Rahmanovic, Pjanic, Tatar, Gojak, Hadzic
Odds
Netherlands 4/11 Draw 15/4 Bosnia 15/2
Previous Meetings
Last month’s 0-0 draw was the first meeting between the two nations.
Must win for Netherlands and De Boer
The pressure is already on De Boer after a winless start to his tenure in charge of the Netherlands, and that will only increase if they fail to defeat Bosnia and Herzegovina on Sunday.
Netherlands attack has struggled under De Boer and Sunday is a great chance for them to bring in some confidence. Bosnia are in poor form and look there for the taking.
Poland lies in wait on Wednesday and Netherlands needs to give themselves a chance of reaching the next round by comfortably seeing off Bosnia. The result also could have a bearing on the World Cup qualifiers, making it even more crucial for Netherlands to win.
Anything else than a victory and De Boer should be in trouble.
Follow
Follow @Footballoranje_ on Twitter
