Netherlands' coach Louis Van Gaal (left) and Netherlands' defender Denzel Dumfries address a press conference at the Qatar National Convention Center (QNCC) in Doha on November 24, 2022, on the eve of the Qatar 2022 World Cup football match between Netherlands and Ecuador. (Photo by Alberto PIZZOLI / AFP)
Doha: After two late goals sealed the victory for the Netherlands against Senegal in their opening Group A FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 match, Dutch coach Louis van Gaal has disclosed Ecuador would pose a greater threat to his side’s ambitions of making it through the group. Netherlands take on Ecuador at 7 pm today at the Khalifa International Stadium.
Goals from Cody Gakpo and Davy Klaassen ensured the 2010 World Cup finalists got off to a winning start in a game many predicted would be difficult for the Dutch.
The Netherlands were far from their best against the African champions, but Van Gaal was pleased with the three points, with surprise goalkeeper Andries Noppert making his international debut.
“They have clever players, making it more difficult than against Senegal. I think Ecuador are a more organised team than Senegal. It will be difficult,” Van Gaal told reporters yesterday.
Van Gaal said Ecuador’s strength could be their defence, even though they also don’t score a lot of goals. The veteran manager also praised Ecuador’s star Enner Valencia whose double sealed the opening win over Qatar. Valencia is still battling fitness and is unsure about starting today.
“We know that Ecuador are a good team. It seems they don’t score much, but they are a side who are difficult to score against. I don’t know if Valencia will play, and that will make a lot of difference not only on quality but also system,” he added.
The Dutch, popularly called perennial underachievers who missed the last World Cup in 2018, can book their place in the round of 16 with a win today, depending on the result of the match between Qatar and Senegal.
The 71-year-old, who led the Dutch to third place in Brazil in 2014, disclosed that forward Memphis Depay is recovering well from his injury and could be fit enough for 45 minutes. Van Gaal had ruled out the Barcelona forward for the match, but he was a surprise substitute against Senegal and was involved in the second goal.
“Memphis is a quality player, and he can become a star, and I know that for sure. We have increased his training intensity, and he played for 30 minutes (against Senegal), and we are proceeding to the next step, which is 45 minutes. His injury makes it difficult to decide when he can start.”
Ecuador sweats over Valencia
La Tri’s target man Valencia is still being assessed for a knee strain he picked up in their win against Qatar, according to coach Gustavo Alfaro.
The 33-year-old is pivotal to Ecuador’s World Cup dreams, but fear over an apparent knee injury has left Alfaro with a problem.
“The tests showed that he doesn’t have an injury, but the trauma is very serious. We’ll have a look at him this afternoon (yesterday) and decide,” Alfaro told reporters.
“I said the other day that not even fire could stop Enner. If it’s up to him, he will play. Let’s give it the benefit of the doubt and hope he responds well in this afternoon’s training.”
Alfaro said La Tri must be strong to run down their opponents throughout the match.
“What we did against Qatar will be insufficient against Holland or Senegal; we have to improve. “I’m happy with my team. But Holland is a big rival.
“We have everything to win and nothing to lose,” Alfaro added.
When: Today at 7:00pm
Where: Khalifa International Stadium (Capacity: 40,000)
Key stats:
- Netherlands have been runners-up at three World Cups and are competing in their 11th finals.
- They finished top of their World Cup qualifying group and are unbeaten in 16 games since their elimination at the last European Championship by the Czech Republic.
- Netherlands began their Group A campaign with a 2-0 victory over African champions Senegal.
- Ecuador are playing in their fourth World Cup with aspirations to surpass their previous best performance when they reached the last 16 in Germany in 2006.
- Ecuador secured South America’s last automatic qualifying spot by coming fourth in a perennially tough group, winning seven games and scoring 27 goals in the 18-match slog.
- Ecuador handed a first ever defeat to a World Cup host when they beat Qatar 2-0 in their opening Group A game.
Previous meetings:
The two nations have only played each other twice, both in friendlies. The Dutch won 1-0 in 2006 and they drew 1-1 in 2014.
