Dutch skipper Virgil van Dijk understands criticism of his team at Euro 2024

WOLFSBURG – Netherlands captain Virgil van Dijk said he understands the criticism of his team at the European Championship and agreed with some of the sentiments, despite the Dutch picking up four points out of six in Group D.

The Oranje edged out Poland 2-1 in their opening game in Hamburg and were fortunate not to lose to a wasteful France in their second match in Leipzig, escaping with a 0-0 draw.

“Against Poland, we played well for 60 minutes and created many chances,” said van Dijk. “But we were also under pressure.

“Against France, we were more compact as a team. Keeping a clean sheet against the World Cup runners-up is good. But in possession of the ball, we were very poor.”

The Dutch team came under fire from TV pundits and newspaper columnists following the game against France but van Dijk was unruffled by the criticism.

“Everyone is allowed to have their own opinion, that’s fine. It doesn’t bother me, it’s part of football... We can and must do better than we did against France. We can still make progress in this European Championship,” he added.

With the Oranje looking to improve, striker Wout Weghorst has said he has “qualities to make this team better”.

He came off the bench to sweep home the winner for the Dutch against Poland on June 16, reprising his stunning entry at the World Cup in Qatar 18 months ago, when he scored twice in the last 10 minutes against Argentina to force their quarter-final into extra time and eventually a penalty shoot-out.

But he believes he has more to contribute, even if coach Ronald Koeman told him before the tournament that he would be used as an impact player off the bench.

“A starting berth is what you ultimately want. That is my goal. I believe strongly that I can be important for this Dutch team. I have qualities to make this team better,” said the 31-year-old, ahead of the June 25 tie against Austria.

“We beat them at the previous European Championship (in Amsterdam) and took the three points, but they have certainly improved since then,” he added of their upcoming opponents, who are one point behind the Netherlands in the group standings.

Favourites France also have four points and will play the already eliminated Poland (zero points) in their decider.

Austria made the knockout stage of a major tournament three years ago for the first time since 1954, when they gave eventual Euro winners Italy a fright in the last 16 before losing in extra time.

“Somehow it is nice to be called that (dark horses),” said Christoph Baumgartner, who scored the crucial goal which put Austria ahead in their 3-1 win over Poland.

“We knew against France (1-0 loss) we weren’t at our maximum. We know if we reach our best level, we can beat a lot of nations.” REUTERS, AFP