Netherlands have confirmed their 26-man squad for Euro 2024 after cutting four players from their provisional squad.
Oranje qualified for the tournament behind France and another showdown with Les Blues awaits in a tricky Group D. The Netherlands will also face an in-form Austria and Poland – who they meet in their opener on June 16.
Koeman’s side fell at the round of 16 three years ago and though they are not one of the favourites to claim the prize, their raft of talented performers mean they have the ability to spring a surprise.
After initially announcing a 30-man provisional squad earlier this month, Koeman and have staff have now whittled it down to just 26 players.
One of the four players to have been cut from the squad is Chelsea loanee Ian Maatsen, who has spent the second-half of the season at Borussia Dortmund.
Despite his impressive displays in Germany – which have seen them reach the Champions League final – the 22-year-old has not made the final squad.
As well as Maatsen, the three other players to miss out on the tournament Nick Olij, Quinten Timber and Marten de Roon.
Timber is the brother of Arsenal’s Jurrien Timber – who also missed out on the squad due to his long-term injury in 2023-24 – and has impressed in the Netherlands.
There are, however, still a number of Premier League stars included in Koeman’s squad for the tournament.
Liverpool’s Virgil Van Dijk will lead the team, alongside Anfield colleagues Cody Gakpo and Ryan Gravenberch.
Tottenham’s Micky van de Ven, Manchester City’s Nathan Ake and Brighton’s Bart Verbruggen have also been included in the star-studded defence.
Former Premier League favourites Georginio Wijnaldum, Steven Bergwijn, Wout Weghorst and Daley Blind also feature in the squad heading out to Germany.
Elsewhere, Bayer Leverkusen wing-back Jeremie Frimpong could be key to Dutch success this summer having had a stunning season in Germany.
Football fans are realising why the Netherlands national team wear an orange shirt despite the colour not featuring on the country’s flag.
On the international stage, fewer teams are as iconic as the Netherlands. Since 1905, they’ve wowed the world with a stunning brand of football.
Their ‘total football’ has captivated the imagination of coaches all around the world and its impact is still extremely prominent in today’s game.
The Netherlands have been drawn in Group D for Euro 2024, alongside Poland, Austria, and France.
While they were eliminated in shock fashion at the last tournament against the Czech Republic, there is a considerable amount of optimism in the Dutch camp with youngsters like Xavi Simons coming through.
Ronald Koeman’s kicked off their tournament with a 2-1 win against Poland on Sunday at the Volksparkstadion in Hamburg thanks to goals from Cody Gakpo and substitute Wout Weghorst.
The flag of the Netherlands is red, white, and blue, but have you ever stopped to wonder why the shirts they wear are orange?
They are not the only country who wear a different coloured kit to the ones represented on their flag, with Germany’s iconic white kit in stark contrast to the red, black and yellow that adorns their national flag.
Well, we’ve got the answer.
The Netherlands’ kit and crest are orange because it’s the colour of the House of Orange-Nassau – the Dutch royal family.
‘Prince of Orange’ is seen as a compliment in the country. They aren’t the only sports team to wear orange.
The Netherlands’ hockey and rugby teams do so too, along with a number of other sports teams, while the football team’s nickname is ‘Oranje’.
Media outlets in the country have also referred to the team as the ‘Clockwork Orange’.
In the years after the country earned independence from Spanish rule, the national flag was actually originally blue, white and orange.
Leave a Reply