The Dutch team must solve these four problems to be successful at the European Championship

How is the Dutch team doing, eighty days before the first match at the European Football Championship in Germany? Four important developments highlighted towards that opening match on June 16 against Poland.

Attack leader is back – now stay fit

The rapid anticipation. The explosive, short sprint, when the German left back plays back sloppily. Dutch striker Memphis Depay is lurking after three minutes. He is right on top of it, intercepts the ball. And holds off his guard. Sensitive cross with his right foot, tailor-made for the incoming midfielder Joey Veerman, who scores.

That unpredictable thing, the short turn away, the acceleration. National coach Ronald Koeman said it last Monday, when the Dutch national team gathered in Zeist: Depay is close to his old level again. He experienced a lot of physical setbacks after his cruciate ligament injury at the end of 2019 – last year he only played two of the ten international matches.

Feyenoord coachArne Slot It all starts with Depay dropping out and causing the central defender to have doubts

Not only did he prove to be important in the practice match against Germany in Frankfurt (2-1 loss), but that was also the case against Scotland (4-0 win) on Friday. On talk show Rondo At Ziggo Sport, Feyenoord coach Arne Slot analyzed on Monday how most attacks start with Depay. The pattern: by dropping back from the striker, he “cleverly” creates space behind the defense.

When midfielders then sprint ‘over’ him into the depths, he is able to feed them with passes. Such as shortly after half-time, when Depay wanders into his own half and is played through. With a clever backheel he launches midfielder Tijjani Reijnders, a combination that ends with a dangerous shot from Cody Gakpo. “It all starts with Depay dropping out and causing the central defender to have doubts,” said Slot. “And then it happens.”

After a year’s absence, Depay immediately reasserts himself as the attack leader of the Dutch team. Question is: for how long? His fitness remains a concern. And thus his load capacity – the number of minutes he can handle. March last year, Depay was injured in the second game in four days, against Gibraltar. During this international match, he managed to play 75 minutes twice in the same frequency.

“We have to be careful when he gets tired, we have to be careful with him,” Koeman said last week. At the European Championship, the Dutch team will play three group matches in ten days – against Poland, France and Austria. There may be an extension in the knockout phase. Playing everything is a lot to ask for Depay given his injury history. Staying intact and getting into his rhythm even better at his club Atlético Madrid is what matters to him now.

Couple Schouten and De Jong?

Jerdy Schouten could have skipped a few more “stations”, Louis van Gaal thought. The then national coach allowed the midfielder to make his debut in the Dutch team in June 2022, against Wales. Van Gaal was not really enthusiastic. He felt that Schouten could have given deeper, risky passes more often instead of short, safe passes. At the time, it remained a short Orange adventure.

Now Schouten, controlling midfielder at PSV, is a potential starter for the European Championship. Against Germany he was at the basis of two dangerous attacks with his direct passing – skipping stations, that is. Ten minutes after the break he sent Donyell Malen into the depth, and moments later Depay – both attacks led to shots that went over.

They seem like simple passes, but the speed of action reveals that Schouten understood the situation well before he got the ball. He also stands out with interceptions, in his role as controller. That combination of defensive qualities and good passing makes him a serious candidate for the starting line-up.

Also read
This profile about Jerdy Schouten

It is one of the most important choices that Koeman will soon have to make: will Schouten be playmaker Frenkie de Jong’s companion at the European Championship? He was missing again this period due to an injury – in 2023 he was also not present in six of the ten international matches. As a result, Koeman has hardly been able to test who forms the ideal pairing with De Jong. “I think I know who could do that very well,” Koeman said last week. “I’m not going to say who.” This was not immediately clear in the practice matches.

Another important candidate is Tijjani Reijnders from AC Milan, although he aspires to a more attacking role. Feyenoord midfielder Mats Wieffer seems to have less claim after his unfortunate performance against Scotland. Last year Wieffer played three times alongside De Jong, which was not a great success.

Flexibility in the way you play

In which game system does the Dutch feel most comfortable? Koeman paused briefly for that question late on Tuesday evening in Frankfurt. “If you look at the matches, it was more comfortable against Germany.”

In Frankfurt, the Dutch team played in a formation with three center backs and two attacking backs. In terms of positional play and attack structure, this came out well in phases. Where the execution in the classic 4-3-3 system turned out poorly against Scotland on Friday. But yes, says Koeman: they lost to Germany, they won comfortably against Scotland – although that was flattering.

What the style of play will be at the European Championship is still a question mark. The Dutch look more robust and familiar in the formation with three central defenders and emerging wing backs. Due to the many Dutch defenders at the top, this Dutch team fits well. This way of playing, with more defensive security, also seems to be the only way to have a chance against top countries.

Yet Koeman does not close the door to the classic, on paper more attacking 4-3-3. He wants to be flexible and be able to change formations during duels.

The mental problem

Striker He gets to the ball, advances through the axis of the field. Cody Gakpo also sprints a few meters away. Simons tries to pass to him, but does so behind him, instead of stabbing him in the depth. Loss of ball, lost opportunity. The audience sighs, Simons stands with his hands on his hips for a moment and shakes his head briefly.

Simons (20), starter at RB Leipzig, is undeniably one of the greatest Dutch talents. But at the Dutch team, where he has not yet scored in thirteen international matches, his qualities are not yet sufficiently apparent. The low point for the time being was the match against Scotland, in which Simons often lost the ball. “I thought that Xavi sometimes looked for the difficult solution and action too much,” said Koeman. A few days later he said: “He is fighting a 100 percent good match with us, a goal.”

national coach of the Dutch national teamRonald Koeman Xavi Simons fights for us in a 100% good match, with a goal

With national teams there is hardly any time, you have to be there immediately – especially for a final round. The number of training sessions to hone attack patterns and specific match situations is limited. This requires players who dare to play without hesitation – as Tijjani Reijnders shows at the Dutch team.

“Everyone has the right to a lesser match, but it should not happen too often,” Koeman said on Friday. “Because then you will make different choices.”

For Simons, and also Wieffer, the Orange shirt seems to weigh on their shoulders: the difference with how they play at their clubs is so obvious. “If there is one player who wants to be good, wants to be important for the Dutch national team, it is Xavi,” says Koeman. “That’s what you talk about. Whether he doesn’t put too much pressure on himself.”

The fact that this was the last international match in which players could show themselves towards the European Championship may have caused extra mental pressure, Koeman thinks. The question is how he gets Simons to work at the European Championships.

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