Netherlands aims to move into the last eight of Euro 2020 by beating an ambitious Czech Republic side on Sunday evening in Budapest. Winners will face either Wales or Denmark in the quarterfinal stage on July the 3rd.
Frank De Boer's men owned Group B in claiming wins in all three group stage games subsequently qualifying for the round of 16 stages. They conceded only twice and scored eight. Till now, the highest scoring side in the tournament. Also, they are one of the three teams to qualify with a hundred percent record to their name. The much-criticized 3-5-2 formation has silenced everything by producing beautiful football with rightful results. De Boer will be pleased with his player's adaptability to the system. Netherlands are spirited to carry on their so-far impressive journey in the competition.
The Czechs were a decent side to watch in Group D and unlucky enough to finish in third after a marginal defeat to toppers England in the final group game. Their high pressing, energetic and attacking football caused alarm bells to ring for the opposition. Narodak, as they are known, started the Euro campaign with a 2-0 win over Scotland before a well-earned draw with Croatia. Their defeat to the Three Lions on the final day didn't damp their courage to deploy nerve-breaking football now in the main stages.
Netherlands vs Czech Republic Match Details
When: Sunday, June 27th
Timings: 21:30 (IST), 18:00 (CET)
Where: Puskas Arena, Budapest, Hungary
Recent Form (Euro 2020)
Netherlands: WWW
Czech Republic: WDL
Injuries & Suspensions
Luuk De Jong has been ruled out of the competition because of a knee injury he sustained in the Netherlands training. He only managed to get few minutes under his belt at the Euros and was mainly a third choice forward to Donyell Malen and Weghorst. He is not a big miss to the squad traveling to Budapest.
For the Czechs, left-back Jan Boril received his second booking of the tournament against England and will be out from this pivotal clash. Brescia's Ales Mateju could feature instead of him on the flank. Goalkeeper Jiri Pavlenka is still out with a back injury and can only feature next month if the team progresses to the quarterfinal stage.
Netherlands vs Czech Republic Predicted Lineups :
Netherlands: Maarten Stekelenburg, Stefan de Vrij, Daley Blind, Mattias de Ligt, Denzel Dumfries, Frenkie de Jong, Marten de Roon, Patrick van Aanholt, Georginio Wijnaldum, Memphis Depay, Wout Weghorst
Czech Republic: Tomas Vaclik, Vladimir Coufal, Ondrej Celustka, Tomas Kalas, Jan Boril, Tomas Holes, Tomas Soucek, Lukas Masopust, Vladimir Darida, Jakub Jankto, Patrick Schick
Netherlands vs Czech Republic Head to Head :
The orange army have faced the Czechs only 11 times but most of them are remembered for contrasting reasons. The Czech Republic have been the happier of the two recently in this meeting by famously doing the double over the Dutch in the 2016 Euro qualification matches thereby restricting Netherlands to reach the competition properly. The Czechs have also undergone a remarkable comeback in the 2004 Euros when they came back from 2-0 to win 3-2 in one of the best group stage games.
NET vs CZE Dream11 Fantasy Team Prediction :
GK: Tomas Vaclik (Cze)
DEF: Vladimir Coufal (Cze), Stefan de Vrij (Net), Mattias de Ligt (Net), Tomas Kalas (Cze)
MID: Tomas Soucek (Cze), Denzel Dumfries (Net), Frenkie De Jong (Net), Georginio Wijnaldum (Net)
FW: Patrick Schick (Cze), Memphis Depay (Net)
West Ham pair of Vladimir Coufal and Tomas Soucek has been the spark for Czechs in this competition and their task becomes immense at this stage of the competition. Tomas Kalas has also been a rock-solid defender for them. So are the talented Dutch center-back duo. Denzel Dumfries's bombing and threatening run from the left is a treat to the football spectacles while De Jong and top scorer Wijnaldum's creativity and finishing are a real asset to this Netherlands side. Memphis Depay and Patrick Schick are two dynamic forward, one capable of running the show and the other finishing chances. Schick is also one of the top scorers in the tournament.
Match Prediction: Netherlands 2-0 Czech Republic
Recent records of the Czech Republic over the Netherlands have been encouraging, however, the Dutch are sure to avoid any upsets this time out. Frank De Boer's men are determined to do good and will be prepared to battle out the high pressing style of the opposition to book the ticket for the quarterfinal stage. Silhavy's men have done well in the tournament but beating Netherlands is too bigger a task for them to channelize to stay in the competition. So they will bid adieu.
