Category: WC2026

by Jan

Oranje’s year fizzles out….

These matches “for the beard of the emperor” or “for the cat’s pussy” as the Dutch call it, are dreadful to watch.

Uninspiring venue. Bad pitch. Nothing to play for but honour (“what…? Honour? What is that exactly?”) and a team of misfits who have never played together in this team before. A band apart. Kluivert, Hato, Flekken, Brobbey, Zirkzee, De Ligt as LCB.

Skipper De Vrij had his first horror back pass in the first minute and would complain about the state of the pitch after the game.

First half was ok. Oranje in control. Koopmeiners in a central role, demanding every ball and having had more touches than any player (except for the two centre backs). At Juve, he’s a 10. In this Oranje, Koeman wants more security as opposed to the Hungary line up where Gravenberch and Reijnders played in front of De Jong. In this match, Wieffer and Koopmeiners were both in the engine room and Koopmeiners in particular demonstrated his will to convince Koeman.

I”m sure Kluivert and Zirkzee wanted to do the same, but they sadly failed to make an impact, although Zirkzee could have/should have scored his chance.

The only bright light, apart from Koopmeiners, was Noa Lang who had some flashes of creativity and that special cross for Brobbey’s first Oranje goal.

The second half was a tough watch. Bosnia Herzegowina fought opportunistically to give their fans something after the Germany thrashing and they ended up doing so. In the final minutes, Hato had a massive chance to secure the winner but his attempt cleared the bar.

Even with Gravenberch, Gakpo and Weghorst in the team, Orane wasn’t able to find inspiration to kill the game as the players will have tried to keep their legs intact for their upcoming club games.

Lets focus on a more fun topic. Next post will cover the Legend Match Ajax – Real Madrid.

 

by Jan

Decent win Oranje, still headaches for Koeman

While the Ajax legends would dazzle in the Johan Cruyff Arena on Sunday evening, it was the legends-to-be playing Hungary in the Arena on Saturday. More on the Ajax – Real Madrid game later.

Expectations were high: Frenkie was back and we would be able to qualify for the final round in the NAtions League, if we would win. But… Hungary would take our place, if they would win it!

Where is the box?

Koeman made some wholesale changes. The tactical solution with “the box” in midfield was abandoned. Koeman’s favorite tactics work well against strong opponents, but when the other team parks the bus with low blocks, making sure the centre of the pitch is full, it might not be the best solution.

No box in midfield. Playing a 2-5-3 system it seems…

Players like Xavi Simons, Calvin Stengs or Steven Berghuis as right wingers will always come inside and join midfield, making it harder to play through the opponent. With a proper 4-3-3 and keeping the width, Oranje expected to have more attacking joy and for this reason Koeman also picked his target man in Weghorst, who would be serviced with crosses into the box (or so was the plan from the outset.

Koeman also surprised with Van Hecke as the central defending partner for Virgil van Dijk, as the Brighton man impresses regularly with his vertical passing and dribbles into midfield. Koeman clearly expected a defending Hungary, waiting for a counter opportunity.

Constant man-more situatio, with Reijnders and Gakpo completely open.

Once can imagine Koeman’s (and our) horror in the first 15 seconds when an opportunistic Hungary got some lucky touches and was able to get a player through on goal, one v one versus Verbruggen. The Brighton goalie was able to block the attempt and the ref stopped the game for off-side, but it was an early warning!

Hungary CHANCES?

Was Hungary playing all attack? Did we prepare for the wrong game?

We were off to a shaky start, as the coordination between Timber as left back and Van Dijk was wanting at times, while Van Hecke had a nervous beginning with some sloppy touches. Koeman must have implored his lads to make sure we start well. “Not starting well” is an ongoing theme for Koeman and his teams. And again, we look off the pace and in need of some quick fixes.

Four Hungarians versus two defenders…. oops!

And this rest-defence topic would stick to the team for the whole game. Yes, we scored four and kept a clean sheet, but Hungary could have scored three goals on the break themselves if their final ball was a bit better. Still a lot to improve for Koeman.

Here we go, two versus one here

Having said that, that midfield does swing. Gravenberch and Frenkie together is very nice on the eyes. I also thought Malen and Dumfries worked really well on the right ( Dumfries with a goal and an assist, well done!). The switch from side to side worked well and Van Hecke got himself into the game well, with his passing and dribbles.

Second half, we played them like a Boa Constrictor would, sucking the oxygen out of them but still they found too many changes to break through of defence. At one time they got flagged for off side which in my view was level.

Work to be done!

Still work to be done for Koeman, but I think he will not use this midfield trio in the next round, when we play Portugal, Spain or France. I do assume it’s back to the midfield box then, with a Schouten to shield our backline. When Dumfries or Frimpong are in the team, they can definitely take that right flank and a more controlling midfielder can sniff out the danger in time to protect us.

There was a medical incident in the first half, which will have had an impact on the Hungarians: their assistant coach Adam Szalai got unwell and lost consciousness and panic broke out on the sidelines. Obviously, the ref stopped the match and it took the medics 15 minutes or so to deal with the situation. When the poor chap was back on planet Earth and on his way to the hospital, the match resumed with a penalty, as a Hungarian defender had just handled the ball.

So the double punch of the assistant coach potentially in life threatening situation and a goal conceded right after will have had impact on the Magyars. Weghorst scored and decided to celebrate his lion claw celebration which was frowned upon on social media, by people believing he should not have done that.

I personally think it’s a bit over the top. The Hungarians decided to play on and then it’s just another match again and of course you can celebrate your goal! Is my view. As if celebrating more modestly would help the guy more in his rehab?

It was great to see Frenkie again, considering he has hardly played after being out for so long, he did amazingly well and would be my Man of the Match ( the media picked Denzel). You can see he is still a bit rusty, but what a joy to have Gravenberch and Frenkie in that engine room.

I secretly wonder if the NT coach will consider player Frenkie as left centre back once Virgil retires, allowing for a midfield with Gravenberch, Schouten and Reijnders, while Frenkie can play out from the back like Baresi/Scirea/DannyBlind/Beckenbauer used to do… Put Van der Ven in as left back as he can cover for Frenkie with his speed.

But that is for later….

Bosnia Line-up?

The Tuesday match versus Bosnia will not be very relevant for the competition so I hope we’ll see some interesting changes.

I would play Frenkie again, for a half, so he can build up his rhythm a bit more, but otherwise I would go for:

by Jan

Oranje Hungary for success!

And here we go again chaps! Time for Oranje banter. Stop hiding and come out and play!

If Frenkie de Jong is back in the squad, why aren’t you back here?

Oranje only needs to win the Hungary game on Saturday to qualify for the final round of the Nations League. I personally don’t get super enthusiastic about the Nations League, but I do love to see my team play well. The World Cup is where it’s at for me!

This Nations League round, we had a very decent and at times impressive first international break, in which we played a really good half against Germany and the second international break was the opposite, with a pretty lacklustre Oranje playing a terrible half versus Germany.

We scored 5 against Bosnia, kept Germany at 2-2 in Holland, then we drew against Hungary away, and lost 1-0 in Germany versus our Easterly neighbours. One win, one loss and two draws.

But the most important factor we should be looking at is: how did we play?

How did we play?

Did we dominate? Did we manage chances? Were we able to bring our danger men in to the game (Gakpo, Xavi, Reijnders, Brobbey). Did we see any flow?

We all remember the disappointing campaign in the “Covid” Euros, the dreadful World Cup campaign under Van Gaal in Qatar and in part the flat Euros under Koeman.

Remember the Euros under De Boer? We did well in the group stages and ended up seemingly in a comfortable chair on our way to the finals, only to be ousted by the Czechs in the first knock out game?  I remember the circumstances: Oranje only flew to the humid mid European venue the day before the game and the team did seem very leggy. De Ligt got red-carded. Malen missed a sitter. And we ended up losing.

Or the Qatar World Cup. Playing 5 at the back. Never really impressing, until…. the last 15 mins of the Argentina game when Van Gaal played 4 attackers. Immediate results. But in the extra time, Van Gaal directed his men back to defend again. And Koeman also had an easy route to the finals and is probably proud to have made it to the semis, but the quality of the football was under par.

Our squad

So, out with the old guard: no more De Roon, Blind, Wijnaldum and – for now – Memphis.

With exciting players like Lang, Gakpo, Brobbey, Xavi, Reijnders and more, we expected to see some joyful and adventurous play. And we did, in that first week. But not even close in that second international break.

During the presser before the Hungary game, Koeman was asked about it. “I too felt the drop in quality was a bit much. But we were dealing with two issues: the plan didn’t work and the individual quality of the players let us down. Germany in particular played differently and we had trouble adapting to the game and finding the free man.”

Koeman also mentioned the lack of football intelligence: “Don’t forget we used to have a number of “captains” in the team and we missed Ake, Van Dijk, Frenkie for these matches while before this campaign we had Daley Blind and Gini Wijnaldum as well who would be able to read the game. And in those situations you can easily look like it’s all really bad, but it is sometimes just a little tweak that is needed to get a better performance.”

Memphis Depay

Memphis performances in Brazil were mentioned and the question was: why isn’t he in the squad now? He plays his games, he is important for Corinthians… Koeman: “Well, not good enough yet and not fit enough. I am watching his games, I am frequently in contact with him and I get his data too so I know. The timing is not right now. Also, I started this campaign with these players and I don’t want to interrupt our process.” Asked whether bringing Memphis back in the future would be for Depay’s ambition to become Oranje’s top goal scorer, Koeman said: “That will definitely count for him, but not for me. Although…. if he scores 6 or 7 more goals, that will be good for me as well of course.”

Frenkie was a question mark on Sunday, when he had to abandon Barca’s game after taking a hit. Koeman: “Yes, I have to say, I did check in immediately via the app and luckily he messaged me to say he thought it would be fine. Just a knock on the shin I believe. He will train with us and we’ll check him and keep an eye on him but he should be ok to play.”

Who will play

Koeman and the reporters kept on returning to the midfield question: who will Koeman play? Is Gravenberch/De Jong/Reijnders the logical combi? Or De Jong/Koopmeiners/Xavi? And don’t forget Timber. Koeman agreed we are doing well in the midfield area.

Apart from the available players, there is also still Veerman and Schouten, while Koeman also called Ken Taylor of Ajax. “He used to be part of the squad and I was critical on him, last season. I thought it was only fair to let him know that I felt he is doing well again and he’s not forgotten.”

The reporters asked about Feyenoord talent Milambo, the 19 year old wizard who impressed so much in this season. “Yes, there is him but I can see others as well, I think Sem Steijn at Twente and Mijnans at AZ Alkmaar are interesting lads to follow, but there are only 3 or sometimes 4 spots available, so it’s not easy.”

There were some critical questions about the strikers. Brobbey having a dry spell, Zirkzee not scoring much…. The national team manager didn’t agree. “I think Brobbey is playing really well and that means the goals will come. He scored a zinger this weekend, right?

And Zirkzee, he’s another type of player and also didn’t play that much this season. And at times, you also need to look at the players around them. What service do they get?”

Lastly, Koeman was asked about the value of the Nations League. Is this a good way to prepare players? The former Barca coach was clear in his response: “It’s a prize. Another trophy. So even though it doesn’t yet have the allure of a World Cup, it will count on your CV. And it’s a more serious way of organising games, as opposed to the friendlies we used to have. We’re in Group A and we have been there from the start. Only Group A teams can make it into the finals and win this. And don’t forget, this is also a backstop, for teams that can’t qualify for the World Cup, the Nations League finals allows for participation in a series of play-offs allowing you a ticket for the World Cup. That is nice to have, eve if you don’t really expect to need it.”

Line-up

I think Koeman will play with a strong team versus Hungary, as we want to win and need to win.

Verbruggen

Dumfries – De Vrij – Van Dijk – Timber

Frenkie – Gravenberch

Simons – Reijnders – Gakpo

Brobbey

I think we’ll win this 4-1 allowing for Oranje to experiment a tad versus Bosnia Herzegovina.

We might see Olij make his debut against Bosnia and a return to the team for Koopmeiners and Lang.

by Jan

Oranje looking forward: change!

Ronald Koeman comes across as a man who realises this is his last chance for eternal legend status. He was great as a player, he was ok as a coach, and this last (?) stint will make him either a hero or just another coach in the long list of well meaning coaches…

The semi finals at the Euros must have convinced Koeman that Oranje can go for gold and a look at the list of young talents establishing themselves ( Frimpong, Zirkzee, Hartman, Timber, Gravenberch) will have pleased him a lot.

So it’s out with the old ( Daley Blind, Wijnaldum, De Roon) and in with the new ( Hato, Timber, Gravenberch). Blind decided for himself enough was enough. Wijnaldum and De Roon were informed personally by the coach. Koeman also flew to Liverpool to discuss future with Virgil van Dijk. “I felt he wasn’t there fully, at the Euros. I had the idea he was not at his best, defensively. So I flew to see him, spend time and discuss. As I did notice how great he played under Slot, at the start of the new season. But Virgil is committed. He can see his role in Oranje moving forward.”

The “new” squad – logical as it is – does need some more tweaking as Veerman and Van der Ven pulled out due to injuries, and JP van Hecke of Brighton is called in, alongside Justin Kluivert of Bournemouth.

This weekend, the nations league games commence and Oranje is playing Bosnia Herzegowina tomorrow and arch rivals Germany on Tuesday. Asked about the short time in between the Euros semis and these matches, Koeman responded: “The loss versus England didn’t bother me very long. A couple of days, I guess. The end of such a campaign is always abrupt for the loser. You go home, players leave for their break and then you are simply left to evaluate. I think overall, it was a good Euros. We were close and we could have gone all the way. I experienced it all as very positive.”

De Roon and Wijnaldum might have accepted their fate, what about Memphis? “He doesn’t have a club, which is a bit odd. If you don’t play, I won’t select you, of course, but I do find it odd that a player of his standing, with his stats, is still without a club. But a fit Memphis will always be an option for me. He’s only 30 years old. I am in contact with Memphis and I know about his situation and what he is working on.”

Steven Bergwijn, only 26 years old, does not have to count on a new invite. “It’s different for Steven. He has options to show his ambition in Europe and decided to go for the money. That is all good, but I don’t think I will need him moving forward. And yes, Wijnaldum went there and I did select him, but Gini went there as he had no other options. PSG didn’t play him and he needed a place to play, to prepare for the Euros. Wijnaldum had not much choice, but Bergwijn clearly put money over sport ambition so I close the book on him. He could also go to the EPL which is also not bad, financially, but he selected this option.”

As for the striker role, Koeman is interested to see who steps up. “We have three candidates now, with Brobbey, Zirkzee and Weghorst. Weghorst hasn’t played much, if at all. Brobbey is not 100%. But if I had stuck to my rules of “only fit players”, I would only have 13 players. And with Wout and his energy, workrate and passion, I felt I had to select him. I can’t play him for 90 minutes, but it’s good to have him.”

Stefan de Vrij, also an older player, was not selected. “But not because of his age. He played everything at the Euros and was one of our best players. He’s simply not fit, struggled with a hamstring, but he’ll be part of the campaign once he starts playing again.”

Kluivert’s selection was a surprise. “He’s fit, he plays and he plays well too. And he can play in the 10 role, this is how he plays for Bournemouth these days. And I selected Jurrien Timber ahead of Maatsen because I was impressed with Timber’s first games for Arsenal and I felt he deserved a little positive push after his ordeal last season.”

Frenkie de Jong was mentioned as well of course: “He is slowly getting there. It’s been a long time, he had the same ankle issue now three times. There is damage and it needs time to heal. I do hope he will return at full fitness at one stage.”

Joey Veerman expressed his disappointment recently how there was no real interest in him, this summer. “Joey needs to be challenged. I think the Eredivisie is too easy for him, to be honest He wanted to make a step and I actually also felt he had to. It’s necessary for him as he simply has too much time on the ball in Holland. He needs to play under way more resistance.”

What will be different for Oranje in this campaign, compared to the Euros? “It’s a different situation. With a tournament, most players arrive rested and focused on the tournament. And you get 2 weeks usually to prep. This is different. Some players won’t be 100% fit, others might carry a knock, and again some will come in after a loss, others after a win, so it’s a mixed bag and you need days to get everyone at the same level, so to speak. We need to improve our forward press, the build up in possession and we need to bring more energy, more intensity. And once we get to that stage, that is when you can really look at the ideal starting eleven.”

The press conference ended with Koeman’s view on Gravenberch. “He has done ever so well at this season’s start. We all knew he was an exceptional ball player but it seems he also turned a corner in terms of focus and tactical understanding. We all felt he had some focus issues and seemed to be a tad lacklustre at ties. It seems he now realises what it takes to play at world top level. This experience at Liverpool might be exactly what he needed. He is definitely an option for the 6 position.