The Netherlands get their U21 European Championship campaign underway on Thursday and below is all you need to know about Jong Oranje!
- Follow Football-Oranje on X
The Fixtures
The Netherlands begin their campaign on Thursday against Finland at 8pm BST, before taking on Denmark on Sunday, also at 8pm. The group then finishes against Ukraine next Wednesday at 5pm.
The top two from each group progress.
The Qualifying campaign
Qualifying couldn’t have gone better for Jong Oranje as they won all ten games in their group. They were the only nation in qualifying to do this.
It was a decent qualifying group with Sweden and Georgia there but Jong Oranje sailed through it.
The Manager
Michael Reiziger is the head coach of the Netherlands U21s and he recently signed a new deal with the KNVB despite links to the Ajax job.
He has only lost one friendly game since he became head coach and has overseen wins against England and Italy. He favours the standard 4-3-3 formation but has been criticised for some of his squad selection which has seen him stick with some favoured names rather than going with players in form.
The Squad
Goalkeepers: Robin Roefs (NEC Nijmegen), Calvin Raatsie (Excelsior), Dani van den Heuvel (Club Brugge)
Defenders: Wouter Goes (AZ Alkmaar), Anass Salah Eddine (AS Roma), Devyne Rensch (AS Roma), Jorrel Hato (Ajax), Bjorn Meijer (Club Brugge), Rav van den Berg (Middlesbrough), Ryan Flamingo (PSV), Neraysho Kasanwirjo (Feyenoord)
Midfielders: Kenneth Taylor (Ajax), Luciano Valente (Groningen), Ezechiel Banzuzi (RB Leipzig), Youri Regeer (Ajax), Antoni Milambo (Feyenoord)
Attackers: Ruben van Bommel (AZ Alkmaar), Ernest Poku (AZ Alkmaar), Noah Ohio (Utrecht), Thom van Bergen (Groningen), Myron van Brederode (Fortuna Dusseldorf)
Players Missing from the squad
Reiziger was hit by injuries before the tournament that saw star striker Emanuel Emegha ruled out, along with first choice goalkeeper Rome-Jayden Owusu-Oduro. Ajax defender Youri Baas and NEC midfielder Dirk Proper also dropped out.
Denso Kasius, Finn van Breemen, Ki-Jana Hoever, Gjivai Zechiel, Kian Fitz-Jim, and Sontje Hansen were some of the names to miss out despite featuring in qualifying.
The biggest omission and most controversial decision was to leave AZ Alkmaar striker Mexx Meerdink at home. Despite his excellent form for AZ towards the end of the season, Reiziger decided to stick with Ohio and Van Bergen as his two strikers, despite them not scoring close to the same number of goals as Meerdink this season.
Possible starting eleven
Roefs, Rensch, Maatsen, Flamingo, Hato, Taylor, Banzuzi, Milambo, Manhoef, Van Bommel, Ohio
Star Players
Jorrel Hato
Already a full Netherlands international, Hato has been a standout player for Ajax since he made his debut at the age of 16. Now 19 he has already made over 110 appearances for Ajax. Capable of playing at centre-back or on the left of defence, he is being linked with big money moves to Chelsea and Arsenal already.
Kenneth Taylor
One of the most experienced players in the squad, Taylor goes into the tournament on the back of an excellent season for Ajax. The versatile attacking midfielder scored 15 goals in all competitions and looks ready to star at this tournament. Another who already has several caps for the full Netherlands side.
Ruben van Bommel
The son of Netherlands legend Mark van Bommel, the AZ Alkmaar winger may be the biggest attacking threat for Jong Oranje. Direct, skillful and a goalscorer, Van Bommel had a frustrating campaign hampered by injuries but he showed signs of form at the end of the campaign. If he gets the chance he loves to cut inside from the left and shoot, much like Cody Gakpo.
Possible Breakout stars
Luciano Valente
The man in demand, Valente was originally left out of the squad but was eventually brought in after Proper was left out. He had an excellent season for Groningen and is being heavily linked with Feyenoord, but there is also interest from Italy, with Valente having Italian roots. A tall, strong and skillful attacking midfielder, Valente has the talent to be an excellent player and this could be his big breakout if given a chance. It may have been a mistake for Feyenoord not to get this deal wrapped up before the tournament.
Ezechiel Banzuzi
A box to box midfielder, Banzuzi was just snapped up by RB Leipzig before the tournament began and that is a smart move given that they could have faced a lot of competition. He came through the NAC Breda academy and was linked with several Eredivisie sides but made the move to Belgium with OH Leuven. That paid off as his game as developed and earned him a move to the Bundesliga. Tall, strong and a powerful runner on the ball.
Can the Netherlands win the tournament?
No nation goes into the tournament in better form than the Netherlands and they have been given a kind group on paper. Denmark, Finland and Ukraine should not be taken lightly but if the Netherlands play to their form then they should top the group.
However, topping the group means a match against the runner up of group C and that could be France or Portugal. If they can get through that then they will fear nobody.
Reiziger has a strong squad at his disposal but the only question will be whether Ohio and Van Bergen can provide enough goals to win the tournament.
Follow
Follow @Footballoranje_ on Twitter
