Requiring just one more victory to ensure qualification for Euro 2024, the Netherlands welcome the Republic of Ireland to the Johan Cruyff Arena for Saturday's Group B battle.

Ronald Koeman's men occupy second place in the section with 12 points to their name, while the Boys in Green have already been eliminated from top-two contention and are clinging onto playoff hope.

Match preview

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As France sail off into the German sunset - having already confirmed a place at Euro 2024 as group winners - the Netherlands and Greece will butt heads in a two-horse race for the final qualification spot, but the Oranje destiny is firmly in their own hands with two games remaining.

While Koeman's men proved no match for France in their double-header with Les Bleus, the Netherlands have claimed a quartet of wins from their other four Group B battles so far, although a few would have watched the finale of last month's battle with Greece through their fingers.

The Netherlands were thwarted once from the spot in Athens, as Nottingham Forest's Odysseas Vlachodimos denied Wout Weghorst, but three minutes into second-half injury time, captain and unlikely 12-yard source Virgil van Dijk made no mistake with his last-gasp penalty to propel his nation above Greece and into second place.

Boasting a game in hand and a superior head-to-head record over Greece, Koeman's side will guarantee a top-two finish with a victory against the Irish, but they have a final-day showdown with basement side Gibraltar to fall back on should any shocks occur on Saturday.

Even if the unthinkable occurs and the Netherlands drop out of the automatic qualifying spots - which would require Oranje to suffer two defeats and Greece to take at least a point off France next week - Koeman's men have the safety net of a spot in the playoffs, which may or may not materialise for their upcoming visitors.

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A third Euros qualification since 2012 remains a possibility for the Republic of Ireland, even though Stephen Kenny's side have - as expected - failed to upset the French and Dutch apple carts in Group B, accruing just six points from 21 on offer so far.

Both of those victories unsurprisingly came against whipping boys Gibraltar, whom they thumped 4-0 in their most recent contest thanks to strikes from Evan Ferguson, Mikey Johnston, Matt Doherty and Callum Robinson to right the wrongs from their previous 2-0 Dublin defeat to Greece.

The Group B standings will largely pale into insignificance for Ireland, but Kenny's side remarkably need to lose to the Dutch to benefit their chances of a spot in the playoffs, as the Boys in Green's Nations League ranking is higher than Greece and lower than the Netherlands, who must finish above the Pirate Ship in Group B to keep Ireland in with a chance of advancing.

The Irish will certainly not engage in tanking, though, and results elsewhere going against them would also extinguish their wafer-thin hopes of a playoff place before Kenny's future begins dominating the headlines again.

Ireland needed just four minutes to break the deadlock against the Netherlands in September through an Adam Idah penalty, but Cody Gakpo and Weghorst completed a 2-1 comeback for the Dutch, who have not been beaten by the Boys in Green since Robbie Keane was on target in a 2004 friendly.

Team News

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Like many of their European counterparts, the Netherlands have been forced into a couple of alterations to cope with the surfeit of November injuries, as Manchester City's Nathan Ake has withdrawn from the ranks alongside Lutsharel Geertruida, Jeremie Frimpong and Ajax attackers Brian Brobbey and Steven Bergwijn.

Uncapped Toulouse striker Thijs Dallinga has earned his first call-up in place of the latter two and is one of two players in the ranks seeking their first senior Dutch appearance alongside 17-year-old Ajax defender Jorrel Hato, who admitted that he was "completely surprised" by his selection.

Despite sharing the gloves with Jason Steele at Brighton & Hove Albion, Bart Verbruggen has been confirmed as Koeman's number one goalkeeper for the national team, while Daley Blind could win his 104th cap to draw level with Dirk Kuyt in sixth place in the all-time Oranje charts.

Meanwhile, Ireland boss Kenny originally conceded that all of Ferguson, Will Smallbone, Chiedozie Ogbene and Jamie McGrath are doubtful for their final group fixture, and Smallbone and Ogbene have both been ruled out alongside Festy Ebosele.

Ferguson was unavailable for Brighton's recent draw with Sheffield United due to a back issue, but Kenny has hinted that the teenage frontman is pushing to be available for Saturday's battle, where he will endeavour to score past Seagulls teammate Verbruggen rather than protecting him.

Twenty-year-old Blackburn Rovers midfielder Andrew Moran represents the only uncapped player in the visitors' ranks, but Jayson Molumby is a more likely candidate to start in midfield.

Netherlands possible starting lineup:
Verbruggen; De Vrij, Van Dijk, Blind; Dumfries, Reijnders, Wieffer, Hartman; Simons, Weghorst, Gakpo

Republic of Ireland possible starting lineup:
Kelleher; Doherty, Duffy, Scales, Manning; Knight, Cullen, Molumby; Sykes, Ferguson, Johnston

We say: Netherlands 2-0 Republic of Ireland

A pair of victories over Gibraltar are nothing to shout about for Ireland, and while Kenny's side did give the Netherlands a good run for their money two months ago, a sterner test awaits them in Amsterdam.

Despite their wealth of injuries, the Dutch ought to quell an Ireland side lamenting several fitness concerns of their own to punch their ticket to next year's tournament.


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Written by
Ben Knapton

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