In-form Holland target seeding for Euro 2020 qualifiers
BRUSSELS: Holland will aim to pick up more points from Nations League matches against France and Germany next month to secure one of the 10 seeds for the European Championship qualifying draw in December, coach Ronald Koeman has said.
“The most important thing is to get a seeding for the draw and that is possible if we get a few more points,” Koeman said after his side battled to a 1-1 draw with FIFA world number one Belgium in a friendly in Brussels on Tuesday.
It was another positive result for the Dutch, who beat Germany 3-0 in the Nations League in Amsterdam on Saturday after opening their campaign in that tournament with a 2-1 loss to France.
Holland will next host world champions France in Rotterdam on Nov 16 and complete Nations League A Group 1 play against the Germans in Gelsenkirchen three days later.
“I think we have laid a foundation,” said Koeman, who took over as national team coach in February.
“A lot of people before we started the Nations League didn’t give us much chance of getting any points off these two teams. But now we have three already and we want to get some more.”
The leading 10 of 12 countries competing in the top tier of the Nations League will be seeded for the Euro 2020 qualifying draw in Dublin on Dec 2.
There will be 10 groups of either five or six teams with the top two qualifying for the finals, which are being played across 12 countries.
The hosts struck early through a fantastic goal from Mertens, as the Napoli winger pounced after some slack Dutch defending, curling the ball past goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen and two men on the line, and into the top corner.
The 31-year-old continued to run the visitors ragged, stretching to dig out an excellent cross which Romelu Lukaku could only head over from less than six yards out.
Holland almost levelled after a quick counter-attack, but Memphis Depay failed to get a clean connection on his shot and was denied by the legs of Simon Mignolet, making his first appearance in the Belgian goal since March.
But the Lyon forward cut open the home defence in the 27th min- ute, sending through a perfect pass for Nigerian-born winger Groeneveld to slide home on just his second international appearance after coming on as a substitute against Germany.
The visitors continued to slice through the Belgium defence with ease, and Quincy Promes saw a fierce long-range strike bounce back off the post with Mignolet scrambling.
Eden Hazard, who has already scored 10 goals this season for club and country, should have restored the Belgian advantage before halftime, but shot wide with the goal gaping after Lukaku’s clever lay-off.
Martinez rang the changes at the break, bringing on Michy Batshuayi for Lukaku and Dennis Praet for Mertens, while Thorgan Hazard replaced his older brother.
Batshuayi twice almost scored early in the second period, shooting narrowly wide and seeing a twisting header clutched by a diving Cillessen.
The striker, on loan at Valencia from Chelsea, went close to a winner again late on, as Barcelona ‘keeper Cillessen palmed away his close-range volley. — AFP