Match report: Netherlands 0-1 England
FULL TIME: Netherlands 0-1 England
England win in Holland for the first time since 1969, thanks to Jesse Lingard’s second-half strike! It’s no more than Gareth Southgate’s side deserved: they were much the better side, in control of proceedings pretty much from the get-go. That’s halted a seven-game winless sequence against the Dutch, one stretching all the way back to that win at Euro 96. It’s a result that will give England much confidence going into the friendly against down-on-their-luck four-time World Cup winners Italy on Tuesday ... and one which will raise hopes of a good showing in Russia come the summer. The countdown to the World Cup finals: it’s on!
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90 min +3: A lot of midfield faffing, which will do England nicely.
90 min +2: Babel loops a cross in from the right. Weghorst is under it, hoping to get a header away, but Pickford rises high to claim well.
90 min +1: Holland throw everyone forward. De Ligt is caught miles offside.
90 min: There will be four added minutes.
89 min: Some late changes. Maguire, who has been excellent since coming on early, is replaced by Eric Dier. Meanwhile Strootman and De Vrij are replaced by Wout Weghorst and Donny van de Beek.
88 min: Depay dribbles in from the left and nearly breaks into the England box. The door’s slammed shut, so he tees up Van Aanholt ... whose shot at goal goes out for a throw on the right. It’s been that sort of night for Holland.
87 min: England are hogging the ball, running the clock down in a very measured and professional style.
85 min: Depay has been Holland’s best player by some distance. His energy causes England some trouble down the right. The ball breaks to Hateboer, inside the area. Hateboer tries to turn and shoot from a tight-ish angle on the right, but it doesn’t work out for him.
83 min: Depay whips the free kick over the wall, looking to curl one unexpectedly into the top left. But it’s straight at Pickford. England go up the other end, Alli crossing deep from the left. Welbeck threatens to meet the dropping ball at the far post, but van Dijk puts an end to that plan. However he can’t stop the ball breaking back to Trippier, who lets rip from the edge of the box. It’s a very decent effort, but straight at Zoet.
82 min: Depay, from the right, slips a ball inside for Babel, who is crudely dragged to the ground by Stones. This will be a free kick in a very dangerous position, 25 yards out, just to the right of the D.
81 min: Southgate stands on the touchline doing quite a lot of clapping. He knows a big victory - England’s first over the Dutch since that match at Euro 96 - is very close now.
79 min: Holland knock it about, but it’s all very passive. Eventually the ball’s shuttled to Van Aanholt on the left: he’s in plenty of space, but he’s also offside.
78 min: If England manage to hold onto the lead, this will be their first win in the Netherlands since 1969, when Colin Bell was the difference in a 1-0 victory for the then-reigning world champions.
76 min: England enjoy an extended period of possession in the middle of the park. They look confident and in control right now.
74 min: There’s not a whole lot going on. Holland’s response to falling behind has failed to cause England too much heartache.
72 min: Depay, who hasn’t stopped running or harrying all evening, has a blast from the edge of the England area. He doesn’t quite get it right.
71 min: Now Rose is replaced by Ashley Young.
70 min: Nobody can string two passes together at the moment.
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68 min: ... while Rashford, Sterling and the goalscorer Lingard are exchanged for Jamie Vardy, Dele Alli and Danny Welbeck.
66 min: The managers ring the changes. Dost and Promes make way for Davy Propper and Ryan Babel ...
65 min: Holland launch it long. Dost rises on the edge of the box and heads down. Promes peals one goalwards. It’s blocked, but that’s a little better from the hosts.
63 min: The set piece is cleared, but Holland come back at England. Wijnaldum has a rake from the right of the D. It’s not a good effort, but the ball dribbles through to Dost, who attempts to help it goalwards with a backflick. He doesn’t catch it properly and Pickford is able to field it.
62 min: Holland finally spring into action. Depay dribbles in from the left and shoots, but his shot is blocked. Then Promes has a look from the edge of the area. His effort is deflected over the bar for a corner.
61 min: The England fans have caught Euro 96 fever: they belt out a rendition of Three Lions. Football’s coming home. The Dutch support aren’t able to respond with much. Their team haven’t given them much to sing about, to be fair.
GOAL! Netherlands 0-1 England (Lingard 59)
This is no more than England deserve. Lingard spreads the play out left to Rose, who crosses fiercely. De Vrij can only half clear. The ball drops to Lingard, just outside the area. He strokes a confident effort into the bottom left! Zoet might have done a little better, perhaps, but take nothing away from the quality of England’s build-up play, or Lingard’s strike.
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57 min: Now it’s Lingard’s turn to play a poor ball, rolling one infield from the left, blind, towards Stones. Dost nearly nips in to intercept. Stones just about hacks clear, which is just as well, because the Dutch striker would have been through on goal.
56 min: Holland stroke it around the back for a bit. Then De Ligt sprays a dreadful pass out of play under no pressure whatsoever. The young man’s had a shaky few minutes.
54 min: Rashford takes a speculative shot from 20 yards out on the left. It’s deflected out for a corner on the right. From the set piece, Maguire heads down. Surely Henderson or Sterling will smash the ball home from six yards! But they get in each other’s way, the ball doesn’t quite drop for either of them, and eventually there’s a hand ball which releases the pressure on Holland.
52 min: England should have a penalty kick. Rashford tears after a pass down the inside-right channel. As he strides into the area, hoping to round Zoet on the outside, de Ligt comes sliding in from the back. He nicks Rashford, enough to send the striker tumbling. The referee’s not interested. That’s a poor decision.
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50 min: Holland do seem to have a renewed sense of purpose, though. They earn a corner down the right. From it, Depay whips a low cross into the six-yard box from the byline. De Vrij sticks out a telescopic leg and nicks the ball away from Pickford, then flicks it into the net. There’s cheering, and all that, but the goal won’t count because Depay didn’t get his cross in before the ball went out of play.
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49 min: Depay finally gets some joy down the left but having reached the byline in space, his cross isn’t that hot. The ball still drops for Strootman on the edge of the box, but the Dutch midfielder takes a fresh-air swipe. England flood up the other end: Rose makes the same mistake as Depay after a run into acres down the left.
47 min: England pick up where they left off: on the front foot. Oxlade-Chamberlain has a dig from distance, but it’s blocked. Rashford tries to cut in from the left wing, but can’t link up with anyone. A lively start to the half though.
And we’re off again! Holland are out first, having presumably been given a rocket by Ronald Koeman. No changes; do better. They get the ball rolling again when England, equally unchanged, finally rock up for work. “In case you can’t hear what the England fans are singing, it’s actually football-related, and contains no swearing, which is pretty unusual,” reports our man Philip Cornwall. “‘There’ll be no Tartan Army in Mos-cow’, to the tune of 10 Green Bottles. A relief from the usual mindless ‘10 German Bombers’ to the same tune.” Scotland are losing at home to Costa Rica, by they way. Nick Ames has all the news from tonight’s other big games.
Half-time reading:
HALF TIME: Netherlands 0-0 England
Rose finds a bit of space down the left but his cross into the centre is headed clear by de Vrij. Depay has a speculative shot from the right of the D; Pickford smothers. And that’s that for the first half. England have been the better side, though they’ve had no cutting edge. Holland have been very poor. International friendlies, huh. More soon!
45 min: The first half peters out.
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43 min: Some good work from Promes down the right briefly stretches England, but Depay and Strootman faff around and the visitors have the chance to regroup. Holes are filled and gaps are plugged, and that’s that for the Dutch attack.
42 min: Van Aanholt strips Henderson of possession down the left. He looks to tee up Depay on the inside, but the chance to shoot is spurned. Holland are very ponderous.
40 min: So having said that, they come reasonably close to scoring. Hateboer earns a corner with some hard work down the right. The set piece hangs above the penalty spot. Pickford comes off his line and doesn’t get there; Dost clanks a header over the bar. Totally basic football. But it nearly gave Holland the lead.
39 min: Van Aanholt sends Depay scampering down the left. Depay’s cross is high and wasteful. Holland look very uncertain up front.
37 min: Sterling races after a long Lingard pass down the inside-right channel. He’s free, but Zoet races miles out of his box to slide-tackle the ball away from the England man. It’s fine goalkeeping, Sterling clattered but clattered in a fair challenge. The home fans are pretty quiet at the moment; their side are second best right now.
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36 min: Trippier bursts down the right; he’s been a bundle of energy tonight. He floats a long ball forward in the hope of releasing Rashford into the area. De Ligt steps in to chest back to Zoet. Fine football all round.
34 min: England are pinning Holland back in their final third. They’ve impressively taken control of this match. The only thing they need to do is seriously trouble Zoet. That elusive final ball. Trippier tries to unnerve the keeper with a low fizzer while tight to the byline on the right, but the cross is snaffled.
32 min: Sterling zips down the right and is denied further progress by van Dijk. Then Rose probes down the left. He’s bundled over by Hateboer. A free kick, which is curled into the box by Walker. Henderson eyebrows it towards the bottom right. It flashes wide. Rashford tried to arrive on the scene to poke home, but couldn’t make it.
30 min: Sterling has a whack from the left of the D. It’s deflected out for a corner. Maguire meets the set piece with a downward header into a thicket of players in the six-yard box, but nothing constructive comes of the situation. England are much the better side right now.
28 min: England ping it around nicely, and for quite a while, like Holland used to do at Wembley back in the day. Trippier ruins all the good work when set free down the right, clanking an uncharacteristically poor cross over everyone in the box. But that’s decent play from the visitors.
26 min: Promes looks to latch onto a ball sent looping into the England area. Rose gets in front of him and guides it back to Pickford. Holland aren’t doing a great deal in attack.
25 min: Van Aanholt barges into Walker, who falls to the ground. The ball nevertheless breaks upfield to Sterling, and suddenly England are three on two! But the referee blows up ... for a foul to Holland. Very strange.
23 min: Lingard, Rose and Rashford combine in brisk style down the left, earning a corner out of nothing. That was a nice little burst of crisp, technical play. The set piece comes to nothing, mind.
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21 min: Henderson’s loose pass upfield to Rashford is intercepted by young De Ligt, who strides forward in the 1970s style before lashing a low shot towards the bottom left from distance. Pickford gathers it easily enough.
19 min: England have been the better team so far, though that’s not saying a whole load. Rose catches Hateboer with a late clip, a little payback perhaps for their early coming together.
17 min: Good work from Sterling sets up Lingard for a shot from the edge of the Dutch area. Lingard’s low shot whistles wide right of the goal. He wants a corner for a flick off De Vrij’s leg, but he’s not getting it.
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16 min: Walker bursts down the right, a run of great power and ambition. After making it 60 yards upfield, he wants a one-two with Oxlade-Chamberlain, which would release him into the area. Oxlade-Chamberlain opts to switch play towards Rose on the left, and balloons his pass into the stand. What a waste.
14 min: Walker, quarterbacking from deep on the right, spreads a gorgeous crossfield pass to Rose. Rose is clear down the left, but there’s nobody in the middle supporting him. He hoicks a wild cross high over the box and out of play on the right.
12 min: It’s been a stop-start opening period. Holland stroking it around the back awhile isn’t going to help this match gather momentum.
10 min: Harry Maguire comes on in Gomez’s stead. That’s rotten luck for Gomez, who has come a cropper in an innocuous midfield challenge.
9 min: Gomez has gone down the tunnel, he won’t be coming back. England aren’t ready to make a change yet, though, so for a minute they’ll be down to ten men.
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8 min: Sterling buzzes around the front of the Dutch box, before teeing up Oxlade-Chamberlain to the right of the D. Oxlade-Chamberlain sends a rising shot towards the top left, but Zoet is behind it all the way and claims with ease.
7 min: Now it’s Gomez down and injured. He went up for a high ball in the midfield with Dost, and landed on his ankle awkwardly. He hops off with a grimace, for some more treatment.
6 min: Holland press England back for the first time in the match. Depay threatens to break clear down the left but is ushered into the corner and forced to check back. Strootman whips a high cross into the box, but England deal with it.
4 min: Rose takes the corner himself. It’s not all that. Holland clear easily enough. But this is a bright start by the visitors.
3 min: Ah, Rose seems OK. He goes racing off down the left to meet a long pass, and hooks a cross into the mixer from the byline. De Vrij is forced to knock the ball out for the first corner of the evening.
2 min: Rose looks a bit groggy; Hateboer’s shoulder caught him flush in the face. He gets up and will continue. But that’s not an ideal start for the England wing-back.
And we’re off! England get the ball rolling. Stones launches it long. Rashford slides in from the left and nearly works space to shoot, but he’s closed down quickly enough. Then play is stopped so Rose can get some attention; he was clattered by Dutch debutant Hateboer in a midfield 50-50. “Southgate’s missed a trick there,” suggests Jeremy Solomon. “He could have played five full-backs if he’d picked Ashley Young too. I reckon that would have made for a record.”
The teams are out! Holland in their world-famous oranje, England in their equally storied white. A rare old atmosphere in the ArenA, lights flashing and music blaring. Time for the anthems! But we have no obligations, so instead let’s have a blast of this marvellous racket. Close your eyes, drift away, and picture the Cruyff Horns stumbling out of a canalside drinker and onto an Amsterdam pavement at carouse o’clock.
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Gareth Southgate speaks! “It’s a great competition for places now. We believe in all the goalkeepers we have got; Jordan Pickford has excellent distribution. It’s a shame for Jack Wilshere, but across the two games we want to look at different players. You want the players to gain belief. Holland didn’t qualify but they’re still a top football nation. So if we come here and play well, the results will follow.”
A new era for Dutch football begins this evening. It’s the Oranje’s first match under former Southampton and Everton boss Ronald Koeman. They’ve also named a new captain in Virgil van Dijk. The Liverpool man will marshal a three-man defence alongside Stefan de Vrij of Lazio and latest Ajax prodigy Matthijs de Ligt.
An interesting selection by Gareth Southgate. Two right-backs in the shape of Kieran Trippier and Kyle Walker, three if you count Joe Gomez, though he’s a central defender at heart and that’s where he’ll play today. Walker will also take a spot in the centre of the defence. An engine room of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Jordan Henderson. Marcus Rashford takes the place of the injured Harry Kane. And it’s Jordan Pickford who gets a run-out in goal, much as expected.
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The teams
The Netherlands: Zoet, de Ligt, de Vrij, van Dijk, Hateboer, Wijnaldum, Strootman, Van Aanholt, Promes, Depay, Dost.
Subs: Cillessen, Til, Ake, van de Beek, de Roon, Berghuis, Propper, Weghorst, Babel, Vilhena, Fosu-Mensah, Kluivert.
England: Pickford, Trippier, Walker, Stones, Gomez, Rose, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Henderson, Sterling, Rashford, Lingard.
Subs: Hart, Butland, Dier, Mawson, Maguire, Tarkowski, Livermore, Young, Cook, Alli, Vardy, Lallana, Welbeck, Pope.
Referee: Karl-Josef Assenmacher Jesús Gil Manzano (Spain).
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Style guide:
GEORGE: What is Holland?
JERRY: What do you mean, ‘what is it?’ It’s a country right next to Belgium.
GEORGE: No, that’s the Netherlands.
JERRY: Holland is the Netherlands.
GEORGE: Then who are the Dutch?
According to the Guardian style guide, Holland “is only part of [the Netherlands]. Exception: the Dutch football team is generally known as Holland.” So there you have it. Hup Holland Hup!
Preamble
The ballad of the Netherlands and England lopes along to a strange rhythm. All of the early matches were friendlies. The only game before the war was settled by Fred Worrall of Portsmouth in 1935. After it, Chelsea’s Tommy Lawton went goal crazy at Leeds Road in 1946, scoring four times in an 8-2 rout at Huddersfield Town’s old ground. Another notable game featured Johan Cruyff teasing the English in 1977, the 2-0 final score no reflection on the gulf in quality between the sides.
Cue a sudden burst of (mainly) memorable competitive action. Marco van Basten knocked England out of Euro 88; there was a goalless borefest at Italia 90; Ronald Koeman ensured England didn’t reach USA 94; England got some revenge with that 4-1 thrashing at Euro 96.
But since then, it’s been all friendlies again. Seven of them since 2001, and England haven’t won a single one. They’ve lost the last two, both at Wembley, 3-2 and 2-1. Time for some payback at the Johan Cruijff ArenA, where they last played in 2009, coming back from two down to draw, Jermain Defoe the hero?
England are six matches unbeaten, since going down 3-2 in France back in June. That run has taken in fixtures against Germany and Brazil, two of the favourites for the World Cup in the summer, so Gareth Southgate’s men will be in good cheer. The Netherlands meanwhile are also on a run of their own: a five-match winning streak, put together since they too were downed by France, 4-0 last August. It wasn’t enough to qualify them for Russia, the early damage to their World Cup hopes too great, but a good run is a good run is a good run. Something’s got to give this evening, then.
England will hope for a result that’ll put them in good cheer for the World Cup. The Netherlands meanwhile are playing the long game ahead of some hot Nations League action with Germany and France in the autumn. It could be a fascinating evening’s play. It could be a damp squib too, but let’s look on the bright side: it’s on!
Kick off: 8.45pm in Amsterdam, 7.45pm back in Blighty.
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