A new era for the Netherlands under the tutelage of Louis van Gaal begins on Wednesday night, when they travel to Norway for the fourth match of their World Cup Qualifying campaign in Group G.
The two nations, who both have six points from their opening three group games, will meet for the 21st time and for the first time since 2009, when the Dutch won 2-0 in Rotterdam.
Match preview
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The Netherlands return to international action this week for the first time since they were eliminated in the last 16 of Euro 2020.
Despite a 100% record during the group stage, a disappointing 2-0 defeat to the Czech Republic – a game in which they had no shots on target – ended their journey in Budapest.
Just 48 hours after the match, Frank de Boer stepped down from his role as head coach, after just nine months in charge, with Louis van Gaal announced as his replacement at the beginning of August.
The 70-year-old has decided to come out of retirement to take charge of the Dutch national team for the third time in his managerial career.
Van Gaal has had mixed success with the Oranje, having failed to qualify for the 2002 World Cup during his first stint in charge, before finishing third in 2014 during his second spell. The former Manchester United manager is now tasked with guiding the Netherlands to their first World Cup since 2014, after they missed out on the 2018 competition in Russia.
The Netherlands currently sit second in Group G with six points from their first three games. A surprise 4-2 loss to Turkey in their opening group match was followed by two comfortable victories against European minnows Latvia and Gibraltar by an aggregate score of 9-0.
Van Gaal's men are one point behind the Turks at the summit and level on points with Wednesday's opponents Norway, who they have beaten in each of their last four matches without conceding a goal.
Victory for the Dutch in Oslo would see them climb to the top of their group if Turkey were to drop points at home to Montenegro, who the Oranje will face next on Saturday.
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Unlike the Netherlands, Norway failed to qualify for Euro 2020 and have not competed at a major tournament since Euro 2000, the same year a certain Erling Braut Haaland was born.
The 21-year-old's emergence as one of the world's most in-demand strikers has provided optimism for Norwegian supporters, who are hoping their talisman can finally guide them to their first World Cup tournament this century.
As well as scoring seven goals in 12 international appearances, Haaland has found the net 112 times in 158 club appearances since making his debut as a 15-year-old for local club Bryne. Surprisingly though, the Borussia Dortmund striker is yet to score in three qualification matches so far and has found the net just once in his last six international matches.
A comfortable 3-0 win against Gibraltar in Norway's first match was followed by a disappointing loss to Turkey by the same scoreline, before Stale Solbakken's men bounced back with a narrow 1-0 away victory against Montenegro.
Both victories for the Lions came against sides currently outside FIFA's top 50; their last win against any nation in the top 20 was back in September 2015 when they beat Croatia.
Norway are set to face a challenging encounter against the Netherlands – ranked 12th in the world – on Wednesday and will need their star striker firing if they are to cause an upset on home soil.
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Team News
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Norwegian goalkeeper Rune Jarstein has not been selected in Solbakken's squad as the 36-year-old is isolating following a positive COVID-19 test.
Bournemouth stopper Orjan Nyland is set to start between the sticks as a result, shielded by central defenders Kristoffer Ajer and Stian Rode Gregersen.
At 22 years of age, Arsenal playmaker Martin Odegaard has been named captain of the national side, and he is set to start on the right side of midfield, with either Jens Petter Hauge or Mohamed Elyounoussi to play on the opposite flank.
Either Alexander Sorloth or Joshua King is expected to partner Haaland in attack, though as King has not started any of the last eight internationals, he is more likely to begin on the bench.
As for the Netherlands, Van Gaal has named a similar 25-man squad to the one selected by his predecessor De Boer at Euro 2020, though the headline name to return is Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk.
The 30-year-old missed much of last year through injury, but he is now back with the national side and is expected to start as captain at the heart of the defence alongside Matthijs de Ligt and Stefan de Vrij.
These three centre-backs as set to shield Norwich City goalkeeper Tim Krul, while wing-backs Denzel Dumfries and Daley Blind will likely provide the width in a 3-5-2 formation.
Central midfielders Frenkie De Jong, Georginio Wijnaldum and Marten de Roon are the three most likely candidates to play in the middle of the pitch, with Memphis Depay set to lead the line alongside either Donyell Malen or Wout Weghorst.
Norway possible starting lineup:
Nyland; Ryerson, Gregerson, Ajer, Meling; Odegaard, Thorsby, Berge, Hauge; Haaland, Sorloth
Netherlands possible starting lineup:
Krul; De Vrij, Van Dijk, De Ligt; Dumfries, De Roon, De Jong, Wijnaldum, Blind; Weghorst; Depay
We say: Norway 1-3 Netherlands
An intriguing battle between Haaland and Van Dijk is set to take place on Wednesday, though the Dutch defender will be supported in the back three by De Ligt and De Vrij, who between them could make it a frustrating evening for the Borussia Dortmund striker.
The Oranje head into this encounter as the favourites and we feel that they have enough quality throughout their squad to claim all three points in Oslo.
Top tip
Oliver Thomas
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Netherlands win with a probability of 52.97%. A win for Norway had a probability of 25.43% and a draw had a probability of 21.6%.
The most likely scoreline for a Netherlands win was 1-2 with a probability of 9.5%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-2 (7.09%) and 0-1 (7.06%). The likeliest Norway win was 2-1 (6.34%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (9.46%). The actual scoreline of 1-1 was predicted with a 9.5% likelihood.
