The Oranje skipper, Virgil Van Dijk, acknowledges the flak his squad has caught at Euro 2024, despite not losing a match thus far, even following a stalemate with France.
After a come-from-behind victory over Poland, the Dutch scraped a draw against a profligate French team.
In that skirmish, commandeered by Didier Deschamps’ crew, the Netherlands notched their sparsest ball-holding stats in the annals of Euro tournaments, a mere 37% possession.
Yet, bar shootouts, Netherlands’ record shines with only one defeat in their previous 18 outings at major tourneys—this sole setback occurred at Euro 2020 versus the Czechs.
Despite the shade thrown by pundits and editorialists post-France fray, Van Dijk, the stalwart of Liverpool, remained stoic in the face of criticism.
“Opinions? They’re dime a dozen,” he remarked. “Doesn’t faze me; it’s part and parcel of the game. If they got under my skin, I’d be living a pretty sour life.”
“We expect a lot from ourselves too. We’ve got the chops, truly. In high-stakes bouts, we aim to strut our stuff. Post-France, we had a real chin-wag and it’s clear, we need to step up our game for what’s next in the Euros.”
“Stepping up is non-negotiable. We’ve got room to amp up our game,” he added.
The team gears up to face Austria in Berlin come Tuesday, poised to end their group round on a high.
With Ronald Koeman at the helm, a draw or win over Austria could help the Dutch clinch the top spot in Group D, provided they match or outclass France’s result against Poland.
