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Memphis Depay once again the star-man of Oranje
He may be having a tough time at Lyon but when Memphis pulls on an Oranje shirt he is a player transformed.
Memphis clearly feels the confidence from Ronald Koeman and repaid his manager’s faith with three goals and three assists in the two games.
Right now, Memphis has solved the striker issue and is a major threat to any team. Let’s hope he stays fit for the Nations League clashes in June.
Wing issues for Koeman?
Memphis Depay may be starring up front for Netherlands but Koeman still has to decide who flanks the star striker.
Ryan Babel, Quincy Promes and Steven Bergwijn all got their chance but none of them fully convinced.
Babel looked slow and tired against Germany, while his two big misses in the first-half proved costly. Promes and Bergwijn pressed well and are a threat with pace but didn’t provide an end product.
Bergwijn is one of Netherlands biggest talents and should remain in the squad but Koeman isn’t short of other wing options for the summer ahead of Babel or Promes.
Whoever, Koeman chooses in the summer it is clear that Netherlands needs more end product from its wingers. Memphis can’t be the only one scoring and assisting.
Van Dijk and De Ligt can have off-days
Virgil van Dijk and Matthijs de Ligt are two of the best centre-backs in world football but even they can have off-days.
Sadly it was against Germany on Sunday when it went wrong. De Ligt slipped for the opener while Van Dijk backed off Gnabry for the second. Both then left Schulz completely free in the box to net the winning goal.
It was clear that Germany’s pace was a problem for the duo and that will become an issue again when England are the opponent in June. Their electric frontline could cause problems and Koeman will have to work on De Ligt and Van Dijk’s partnership ahead of the clash. Maybe it could be an option to add Nathan Ake into the middle and play a 5-3-2.
Seven out of eleven players decided?
Koeman has stated he likes playing with a settled group and the lack of changes for the two ties this week seems to prove that he has almost settled on his preferred XI.
The only question marks are the right-back slot, one midfield place and the two wing positions.
Jasper Cillessen is undoubtedly number one, while van Dijk and De Ligt will continue to play in the centre-back slots. Daley Blind seems undroppable for Koeman while Frenkie de Jong, Georginio Wijnaldum and Memphis Depay are settled.
Dumfries is currently the best right-back Netherlands have but Koeman likes Kenny Tete despite his lack of gametime at Lyon. Then there is Hans Hateboer and Rick Karsdorp, who are both at big Italian clubs.
In midfield, Marten de Roon and Davy Propper seem to be battling for the one free midfield slot but Tonny Vilhena should also be able to stake a claim.
Up front, any one of six or seven wingers could be picked to partner Memphis.
The competition for places is a good sign for Netherlands heading into the future.
Northern Ireland a threat?
Germany
In June, while
Netherlands host Northern Ireland on the 10th of October and then travel to Belfast a month later in the final game of the qualifiers. Those could be the big games for Oranje.
Netherlands are clearly a step above Northern Ireland in terms of quality, but they should not be underestimated. Especially when you look back at Oranje’s struggles with Iceland, Turkey and the Czech Republic four years ago.
Still plenty to be positive about
Netherlands went into this week full of confidence and the narrow defeat against Germany shouldn’t take the positive vibes away.
Netherlands are still favourites to qualify in the top two and have the Nations League semi-final to look forward too in June. There is also the safety net of the Euro playoffs should it all go wrong.
Koeman’s side showed their real side in the second half of the Germany game and the way they fought back was very encouraging.
The good results for the U17’s, U19’s and U20’s this week also show that the future is bright and Koeman has plenty of options to mull over in the next few months.
It’s still a massively exciting time to be an Oranje fan!
Good evaluation IMO- The Dutch team may have recieved a gift last night while they didn’t win they certainly showed they are a legitimate force to be reckoned with and plenty of moxie to stage a comebacxk that fell a little short and the game gave opportunity to show weaknesses that can be worked on.
Think Koeman is missing out on a massive opportunity – de ligt, van dijk, ake.
This back three is about as good as anywhere in world football, club or country.
It gives him the opportunity to play a 3-4-3 which considering the way he tried to press and left huge spaces in midfield, would seem a better balanced option.
With Wijnaldum and Blind covering the flanks in midfield, it leaves Vilhena, Propper or De Roon to partner De Jong in the centre – which gives him options with how to play De Jong, defensive (Vilhena or VD Beek), advanced or free (Propper or De Roon; whatever the case it keeps Frenkie more central which is where he should be.
I don’t thin either Dumfires or Tete do the side justice.
We have a real problem on the forward flanks.
Looking forward, with hope, the Danjuma gets fit and gets more of a run.
With Blind and Ake behind him it could allow him a freer role to attack, while he searches for an allround right forward in the Kuyt.
What was probaby most disappointing about the last wo matches was the lack of forward/attacking passes from the midfield (apart from Frenkie). There was a bit of the Van Gaal about it. Ajax in comparison a light years ahead.
I suppose it gets down to not having the likes of Tadic and Ziyech. Ohh for a Bergkamp and Overmaars!
I agree with the 3 back but the best right now will be the 352 bc of the lack of wingers. I disagree with Gini and Blind as the wing backs. Blind is too slow for this role and Gini finally found his ideal role in the NT as a b2b/shadow striker. Dumfries and PVA has pace and attacking skills for wing backs. Cillessen-Dumfries, PVA, van Dijk, De Ligt, De Vrij(Ake) – Frenkie, Propper(or De Roon against big teams) Wijnaldum(van de Beek) – Depay, Weghorst(Luuk) IMO is the best line up right now. Against strong sides when we wanna hit on the counter attack the 2 forwards could be Depay with Bergwijn/Promes/Danjuma but i think we must trust Weghorst who is in great form. He will provide goals and create space from Depay.
Agree on the wing problems. Bad performance aside, Babel is getting old anyway. The nations league is not as important as the Euro qualifiers, so I feel it may be an ideal time to try out a couple people in the wing position, particularly Stengs who looks a quality player.
Please no more 3-5-2,let the midfielders stay deeper and defend,holland caught the germans at a bad time playing right after belarus,de light is quality but lacks seasoning and maturity hence he is embarassed at times.Try a defensive 4-5-1 instead of 3-5-2.