Very uplifted by the spectacle offered during the draw between France and the Netherlands (0-0), Friday, at Euro 2024, former Dutch international Pierre van Hooijdonk regretted the defensive choices of Didier Deschamps and Ronald Koeman.
We had to wait until the 21st match of Euro 2024 to witness a 0-0 in Germany. And unfortunately for French supporters, he fell on the Blues. Orphaned by Kylian Mbappé, who remained on the bench due to his broken nose, the vice-world champions were unable to overcome a Dutch team that was not much more exciting. Highly anticipated, this shock of Group D did not offer a great spectacle in Leipzig, with two clumsy formations in the zone of truth like the two big failures of Antoine Griezmann.
Koeman and Deschamps pinned
“Both teams took the point they wanted. They approached the match that way,” summed up the former Dutch international Pierre van Hooijdonk (46 caps), now a TV consultant, rather well. Not one to use wooden language, the former Feyenoord Rotterdam player, winner of the UEFA Cup in 2002 and fourth in the 1998 World Cup, then took aim at both teams. “Deschamps… There was no Mbappé and he put Rabiot (on the left) when he could have put Kolo Muani, Barcola, Coman… With all this material available, it’s football Shit,” he blurted. Ronald Koeman, considered too cautious in his tactical choices, has not escaped his criticism either.
“The Netherlands is a bit of the same thing. Koeman brought in Weghorst, while Malen could have posed a threat with his speed. He could also have brought in Zirkzee. Both teams played too conservatively. On the offensive side, I saw absolutely nothing from the Netherlands. It was a disappointing match. It was good defensively, but we also expected something offensively. passed the ball 86 times backwards without any attempt to advance,” he railed in comments reported by Voetbal.
An opinion shared by ex-midfielder Rafael van der Vaart: “The match started well, but at the end both teams thought: ‘One point is good, we’ll stop there.’ It’s a shame, even in this new configuration where the best thirds are qualified. France is incredibly strong, but they must show more conviction. With 4 points on the clock, the French and Dutch are on track to reach the round of 16 of this Euro. They will finish the group stage on Tuesday at 6 p.m., respectively against Poland (0 points) and Austria (3 points).
