Netherland secured top spot in their Nations League group with a 1-0 win against Belgium in both sides’ final competitive match before the World Cup.
Despite having some serious injury problems, the Dutch never looked like losing top spot to their neighbours, who struggled to break through the Netherlands backline.
Here’s how we rated every player.
Netherlands
Remko Pasveer, 8 – Was tested more than in his debut against Poland and passed those tests with flying colours, making some good saves and looking good with the ball at his feet. He may well have secured a starting spot for the World Cup with his performances this break.
Jurrien Timber, 7 – Was given the task of man-marking Eden Hazard and did so really well, keeping the Real Madrid man quiet.
Virgil van Dijk, 8 – Made an excellent block, important clearances and got the winning goal, organising the rest of his backline excellently in the process.
Nathan Ake, 7 – Only had 45 minutes to impress but did well in that time, especially on the ball.
Denzel Dumfries, 6 – Was a big threat and got into some very dangerous positions, but his final ball was poor on multiple occasions.
Steven Berghuis, 6 – Had to be subbed off after 30 minutes due to an injury. Before that, he got on the ball a lot but also gave away a chance.
Marten de Roon, 6 – Didn’t do much on the ball, but played a big part in keeping Kevin de Bruyne quiet and added some defensive stability.
Daley Blind, 8 – Was arguably the Netherlands’ best player on the ball, progressing play throughout the match, and looked solid defensively.
Davy Klaassen, 5 – Did nothing on the ball and missed a big chance towards the end. He made some good runs, but that was about it.
Vincent Janssen, 6 – Caused some problems for the Belgium defence with his physicality in the half that he was on.
Steven Bergwijn, 6 – Not a great performance from the Ajax man. He was invisible for most of the match, and when things opened up at the end, he missed a few chances, although he did make a few good runs.
Substitutes
Cody Gakpo, 7 – Was very quiet initially but came into his own towards the end, getting one assist from a corner and almost another with a stunning run. The PSV man is surely the team’s first-choice number 10 now.
Kenneth Taylor, 6 – Worked extremely hard off the ball after coming on at half-time but didn’t do much in possession.
Tyrell Malacia, 7 – Surprisingly played as a left centre-back but did well there in and out of possession.
Stefan de Vrij, N/A
Ryan Gravenberch, N/A
Belgium
Thibaut Courtois, 8 – Made a few excellent saves towards the end to keep the score at 1-0.
Zeno Debast, 5 – A poor match for the 18-year-old, who looked shaky throughout and was beaten by Van Dijk for the Netherlands goal. A night to forget.
Toby Alderweireld, 7 – One of Belgium’s better players, looking good on the ball and defensively.
Jan Vertonghen, 6 – Didn’t do much wrong at the back but wasn’t great in possession.
Thomas Meunier, 5– Made next to no impact going forward and gave the ball away a lot.
Axel Witsel, 6 – Was solid if unspectacular in midfield, being defensively solid.
Andre Onana, 7 – A good performance from the Everton man, who was a real threat.
Timothy Castagne, 6 – Did better going forward than Meunier, but struggled to deal with Dumfries.
Kevin de Bruyne, 7 – Was watched closely by the Netherlands but still managed to have an impact, creating a few chances with some great passes. He could’ve done better when he had a half-chance himself though.
Michy Batshuayi, 6 – Couldn’t cause any problems for Van Dijk, who dealt with him easily.
Eden Hazard, 5 – Couldn’t escape the clutches of Timber, only able to make backwards or sideways passes when on the ball.
Substitutes
Yannick Carrasco, 6 – Caused Dumfries a few problems but couldn’t really create anything of note.
Charles De Ketelaere, 6 – Did better than Batshuayi, making some good passes, but couldn’t break through the Dutch defence.
Leandro Trossard, N/A
Dodi Lukebakio, N/A
Finley Crebolder
