Netherlands to slug it out with Hungary in winner-takes-all clash

Netherlands and Hungary are locked together on five points in League A Group 3 of the UEFA Nations League, as they prepare to meet on Saturday in a winner-takes-all clash at the Johan Cruyff Arena.

Their last meeting in October ended with a 1-1 draw. The battle’s winner is guaranteed a place in the quarter-finals alongside already-qualified Germany.

The Dutch team had demolished Bosnia-Herzegovina   5-2 on the opening matchday. However, it was not a sign of things to come for the Netherlands, having failed to win any of their last three games in the Nations League. Their fate is in their own hands before November’s double-header.

 They had played back-to-back stalemates before succumbing to a  1-0 loss against Germany in their most recent Group 3 showdown, where a 64th-minute strike from Mannschaft debutant Jamie Leweling proved decisive.

According to the log, the Netherlands have five points out of a possible 12. With Germany on ten points, they are currently good enough for second place in the rankings as they lead Hungary on goal difference. However, head-to-head results take precedence when it comes to separating tied teams.

Bosnia-Herzegovina are already out of the race for the quarter-finals, with the single point leaving them four points adrift of Germany and Hungary. The Netherlands will be assured of a knockout place if they overcome Hungary on Saturday, while a defeat would extinguish their top-two chances and leave them at risk of demotion to League B.

Should they win against Hungary, Koeman’s men could make up during their meeting with Bosnia on November 19, they will be on the verge of qualification as they have only ever failed to score in one of their Nations League home games, a 1-0 loss to Italy in 2020.

As for Hungary, which currently sits third on the log on account of an inferior goal difference,  it is also win or bust for the Magyars as far as quarter-final qualification is concerned.

Marco Rossi’s men share the Netherlands’ record of one win, two draws, and one defeat from their four encounters in reverse order.

Germany crushed Hungary 5-0  in their League A opener but they have managed to avoid losing in each of their last three battles.

They held the Dutch to a 1-1 draw last month while they recorded a 2-0 success over lowly Bosnia-Herzegovina, where two efforts from Liverpool star Dominik Szoboszlai either side of the half-time whistle propelled Rossi’s side right back into quarter-final contention.

Reaching the quarter-finals would be another achievement for a team that started out in the doldrums of Nations League C during the inaugural 2018-19 tournament. They had recorded shock away wins in the competition, memorably thumping England 4-0 and defeating Germany 1-0  in 2022.

They also ended their nine-game losing streak against the Netherlands in October, but they have not overcome Saturday’s hosts since 1984 when a Dutch side comprising Ruud Gullit, Marco van Basten, and Frank Rijkaard got stunned in a World Cup qualifier.