Dutch throttle Ronaldo, earn win over 10-man Portugal
Netherlands kick-started their new era in international football as they cruised to a 3-0 friendly victory over European champions Portugal on Monday, with Ronald Koeman enjoying his first win since becoming the coach in February.
The Dutch are still rebuilding after a disastrous World Cup qualification campaign, but they showed plenty of promise in Geneva, crushing Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal just three days after defeat to England.
Memphis Depay put in a particularly good display to upstage Ballon d’Or holder Ronaldo, putting the Dutch ahead with a smart finish early on. Ryan Babel doubled the lead, before captain Virgil van Dijk produced a fine strike late in the half to open up a threegoal deficit.
Portugal stunned Egypt by scoring twice late on to win 2-1, but any hope of a turnaround evaporated with Joao Cancelo’s sending off just past the hour.
And Netherlands ultimately eased to a win, highlighting the strides they have made in last year.
Portugal enjoyed a promising start as they put the Dutch under pressure and dominated possession, with Ronaldo looking sharp. But they were less alert at the back and found themselves trailing in the 11th minute.
Donny van de Beek’s pass found its way through to Depay, who prodded past Anthony Lopes in goal.Netherlands got a second shortly after – Babel heading in Matthijs de Ligt’s cross. The game was essentially over on the stroke of half-time, as Van Dijk volleyed in a third.
After seemingly being on the receiving end of some choice words from coach Fernando Santos at the break, Portugal looked rather more purposeful upon the restart and dominated again.
But still their final pass lacked quality and Portugal just could not make the most of their superiority.
A second yellow card then ended Cancelo’s match and dealt significant blow to Portugal’s slim chances of a comeback.
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