Netherlands U17’s left it late to beat Portugal U17’s 1-0 on Tuesday to finish 2nd in the Algarve cup.
- By Michael Bell
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Germany wrapped up the tournament win earlier in the day after beating England 2-0 for their third win in three games, but Netherlands wrapped up 2nd place thanks to a late goal from substitute Jay-Roy Grot.
The match against hosts Portugal was played in difficult conditions with wind playing a big part throughout. Maarten Stekelenburg’s side dominated proceedings in the first half, but Nigel Robertha, Teun Bijleveld and Reda Boultham all passed up good opportunities to open the scoring.
In the second half Netherlands played into the wind which made good football difficult, but Robertha nearly scored after the Portuguese goalkeeper hit a clearance at the Feyenoord youngster, but the ball rebounded just wide.
Finally in the second minute of injury time the Oranje found the winner they deserved with NEC/Oss striker Jay-Roy Grot finished off a pass from Ajax’s Carol Eiting.
Netherlands U17’s will now prepare for the elite round of qualifying for this summers European Championships, with the young Dutch side facing Georgia, Northern Ireland and Belgium in March.
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