City’s Nathan Ake played just over an hour and provided one assist as the Netherlands wrapped up their EURO 2024 preparations with a 4-0 victory over Iceland at Feyenoord’s De Kuip Stadium.
In Ronald Koeman’s team’s last friendly before the tournament, which starts in Germany on Friday, the Dutch proved too strong for their Icelandic visitors.
Ake almost opened the scoring for the hosts with a header that skimmed the post in the 16th minute from Joey Veerman’s cross.
But Koeman’s side didn’t have to wait much longer for their first goal, with Xavi Simons opening the scoring in the 23rd minute.
The RB Leipzig midfielder finished from close range after latching on to a header from Denzel Dumfries.
The Veerman/Ake combination stood out again as the Netherlands looked to extend their first-half lead, but the City player again failed to hit the target.
However, four minutes into the second half, Ake played a key role as the Dutch doubled their lead through a goal from captain Virgil van Dijk, who headed into the bottom corner from Ake’s precise assist.
Ake then gave way to Micky van de Ven just after the hour mark, before Koeman’s side extended their lead further in the 34th minute when Donyell Malen finished from the right of the box.
And an excellent night’s work from the hosts was sealed three minutes into stoppage time when substitute Wout Weghorst also broke through the Icelandic defence.
It was the ideal way for the Dutch to finalize their preparations before the start of the tournament in Germany.
The Netherlands begin their Group D campaign this Sunday, June 16, when they face Poland in Hamburg. The match starts at 2pm (UK time).
They then face France on Friday 21st June in Leipzig at 8pm (UK time).
The Dutch end their group campaign by taking on Austria on Tuesday 25th June in Berlin at 5pm (UK time).
2024-06-11 10:38:19
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