Who said Friday isn’t a day for football? In the UEFA Nations League, Germany and the Netherlands faced Bosnia and Herzegovina and Hungary, respectively. Despite struggling to secure the result, largely due to having three goals disallowed, the Germans emerged victorious with a 2-1 away win, retaining their lead in Group 3.
In a similar away scenario, the Netherlands did not enjoy such a happy outcome. The Orange team fell behind early and suffered the dismissal of one of its stars, defender Virgil Van Dijk, in the second half. Dumfries salvaged the evening for the Dutch by netting an equalizer in the dying moments of the match. Here are the details of the games:
The standout performer was striker Deniz Undav, who is enjoying a fantastic spell with Stuttgart. He was the man of the match, having already ‘terrorized’ Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu in the Champions League.
The scoring began in the 30th minute with a breathtaking team play. After a precise cross into the box, Wirtz caught the opposing defense off guard by laying the ball back perfectly, allowing Undav to strike first-time past the goalkeeper and into the net.
Just a few minutes later, in the 36th minute, left-back Mittelstädt delivered a perfect cross from the left, finding Undav again, who made no mistake and doubled the visitors’ lead with a quality finish.
In the second half, Undav continued to shine and even scored what would have been his third goal of the match, but the hat-trick was ruled out for a marginal offside. However, the scares did not end there. Bayern Munich’s midfielder Gnabry also found the net shortly after, but once again, the goal was disallowed for offside.
In the 70th minute, veteran Edin Dzeko capitalized on a defensive oversight by the Germans to reduce the deficit for the home side, adding pressure in the closing minutes of the match and igniting the fans in Sarajevo.
Despite the opposition’s resurgence, Germany held on to their lead until the final whistle and celebrated a crucial victory in the competition, earning three points and solidifying their position in the battle for group supremacy in the Nations League.
On the same night, Hungary and the Netherlands played to a 1-1 draw in the third round of the Nations League at the Puskás Ferenc Stadium in Budapest. The match was marked by balance and decisive moments, with Sallai opening the scoring for the Hungarians in the first half, while Dumfries ensured the equalizer for the Dutch in the second half, despite the team playing with one less man after the expulsion of Virgil van Dijk.
The Netherlands finished the match with ten players, remaining in the second position of the group with a total of five points, while Hungary occupies the third spot with two points.
The pivotal moment of the match came when Van Dijk was sent off after receiving a second yellow card for a foul on Csoboth, just moments after being cautioned for arguing. The defender’s suspension will be a significant loss for the Dutch national team, who will face Germany in their next outing set for October 14 at Munich Arena.
The matchup between Hungary and the Netherlands was also marked by tributes to Johan Neeskens, a Dutch football icon who passed away last Sunday at the age of 73. A minute of silence was observed before the kick-off in memory of the former player, who is remembered as one of the greatest midfielders in the history of the national team.
Both teams will return to action next Monday, October 14, at 15:45 (Brasilia time), for the fourth round of the Nations League.
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