Netherlands started with 2:1 against Poland in ÖFB group

On Sunday, the “Oranjes” won 2-1 against Poland, who were without their injured star striker Robert Lewandowski, in the Volksparkstadion in Hamburg. Wout Weghorst became the match winner, scoring the winning goal (83′) just over two minutes after being substituted on.

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Before the break, the Poles took the lead against the run of play through Adam Buksa (16th). For the brother of Aleksander Buksa, who played for Bundesliga club WSG Tirol in the season just ended, it was the seventh goal in 19 international matches. He was in the starting eleven not only because of Lewandowski’s injury, but also benefited from the fact that Karol Swiderski was not fully fit after his celebration blunder in the last test. Cody Gakpo (29th) managed to equalize quickly. After the break, the spectators experienced a very open, interesting match in which the Dutch narrowly came out on top.

The ÖFB selection starts on Monday (9 p.m./live ServusTV) in Düsseldorf against tournament co-favorite France. Then the Polish selection awaits in Berlin on June 21, before facing the Dutch there on June 25. Barcelona star striker Lewandowski, who is handicapped by a torn muscle fiber, is likely to be back in the game against Austria after only being on the bench to keep his fingers crossed on Sunday.

• Also read: Faster and younger: The fast kick-off of the European Championship

Netherlands better, Poland more efficient

The Dutch initially trapped the Poles in their own half with good combination play, but were initially unlucky in the final stages. A Gakpo shot was deflected into the corner by Wojciech Szczesny (2nd minute), Tijjani Reijnders narrowly missed from around eleven meters (9th minute), and a Simons shot (14th minute) also missed the goal. The missed chances took their toll two minutes later, as the Poles initially presented themselves as masters of efficiency. Buksa, who was not pressured enough, headed a Zielinski corner into the far corner, turning the game on its head.

Despite the lead, the Poles did not just defend, the Dutch remained extremely dangerous regardless, using the space well thanks to their speed. Szczesny was able to distinguish himself again with a Van Dijk volley (20th minute), the agile Memphis Depay shot over the goal from a good position (22nd minute). In the 29th minute, the ball finally landed in the net. Gakpo benefited from the fact that his shot from just outside the penalty area was deflected unstoppably for the Polish goalkeeper. The Poles only had one other dangerous attack, which Jakub Kiwior missed (32nd minute). Otherwise, the Dutch pushed for the second goal. Gakpo missed his double from the five-yard box (42nd minute), and a Depay shot was also close (45th+1).

After the restart, the Poles kept things much more open, with quick transitions in the game, in which anything seemed possible on both sides. Bart Verbruggen prevented the Dutch from falling behind with a save from a deflected Kiwior shot (58th minute). On the other side, Denzel Dumfries missed the far corner (65th minute) and Stefan de Vrij missed a header chance (73rd minute). It was therefore left to Weghorst to put the finishing touches on the game. With his first touch, the Hoffenheim attacker put the ball into the net with his left from six meters after an ideal pass from Ake.

“Oranje” in the majority

Poland pushed for an equalizer, Verbruggen held on to the win with shots from Swiderski (89th) and Zalewski (95th). For coach Michal Probierz’s team, it was the first defeat after eight unbeaten competitive matches. This meant that a large number of fans in the stadium were able to celebrate.

The Dutch fans had already gathered in the city in the morning and transformed the Reeperbahn and the surrounding area into a sea of ​​orange. Accompanied by DJ music from Oranje buses, smoke bombs and portable sculptures of legends Ruud Gullit, Marco van Basten, Johan Cruyff and Arjen Robben, more than 10,000 Dutch people marched through Hamburg. The Oranje faction was also clearly in the majority among the approximately 50,000 spectators in the Volksparkstadion.