Match report: Netherlands 2-0 Qatar
Group A: The Netherlands secured top spot in the group with a victory over a clearly out-of-their-depth host nation that could scarcely have been more straightforward. Jamie Jackson reports from Al Bayt Stadium.
Group A: The Netherlands go through as winners, with Senegal joining them in second place. There was heartbreak for Ecuador, who failed to get the point they needed to advance and finish third. Qatar whip them in in fourth place, without a point to their name.
Elsewhere in Group A: The sight of a couple of Ecuador players slumped face-down on the turf sobbing uncontrollably tells you all you need to know. Senegal have held on to beat the South American side 2-1 and advance to the Round of 16, where they will face England if Gareth Southgate’s side finish top of Group B tonight.
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A quick recap: Cody Gakpo scored for the third group game in a row shortly before the half-hour mark, while Frenkie De Jong doubled the Dutch lead not long after half-time. The Netherlands got the ball in the net again after substitutes Steven Berghuis and Vincent Janssen combined but the former’s tap-in was ruled out after a VAR consultation for a Gakpo handball in the build-up.
Full-time: Netherlands 2-0 Qatar
Peep! Peep! Peeeeeeeeeeeeeeep! It’s all over at Al Bayt Stadium, where the Netherlands have won with the bare minimum of fuss. They advance to the last 16 of the tournament while Qatar become the first host nation in World Cup history to go out of their own tournament without winning a single point.
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90+4 min: Nopperts is quick off his line and out the left side of his six-yard box to prevent Ahmed Alaaeldin getting to a weighted pass in behind the Dutch defence.
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90+3 min: Denzel Dumfries stands the ball up in the Qatar penalty area with a dart to the byline. He’s trying to pick out Wout Weghorst but Barsham is quick off his line to claim the ball.
90+2 min: Steven Berghuis curls a shot from distance past Qatar goalkeeper Meshaal Barsham and onto the cross-bar.
90 min: All eyes turn in the direction of the fourth official, who undoubtedly incurs the wrath of both sets of players and everyone watching this non-event by announcing six minutes of added time.
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86 min: Netherlands substitution: Kenneth Taylor on for Frenkie De Jong. That’s five substitutions for each side and not for the first time in this tournament on ITV co-comms, Ally McCoist bemoans the fact that all these breaks in play and changes in personnel do little or nothing for the good of the game. I could not agree more.
85 min: Qatar double-substitution: Ahmed Alleldin and Musab Al Khader on for Hatem and Mohamed.
84 min: Netherlands double-substituion: Wout Weghorst and Teun Koopmeiners on for Cody Gakpo and Marten De Roon.
82 min: Daley Blind is lucky not to concede a free-kick on the edge of his penalty area for a foul on Hatem. The ball runs on into the box, where Muntari is penalised for a foul on Virgil van Dijk while stretching to try and control it.
80 min: Netherlands goalkeeper Andries Noppert is forced to save at his near post, blocking a cross from the left before the lurking Muntari can pounce.
79 min: The Netherlands remain in complete control against a side that has all but thrown in the towel.
77 min: A crowd of just under 67,000 is announced for this match between the Netherlands and Qatar. Hmmmmm …
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75 min: In the game you probably should be following and the one I wish I was watching, Senegal have retaken the lead against Ecuador. Chelsea defender Kalidou Koulibaly gets his name on the scoresheet.
74 min: Denzel Dumfries has a shot from distance defelcted off Abdelkarim Hassan. Qatar goalkeeper Andries Noppert dives just to make sure the ball doesn’t creep in at the his near post.
73 min: Eslewhere in Group A, Moises Caicedo has equalised for Ecuador against Senegal, a goal which moves Ecuador back into second place behind the Netherlands.
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69 min: Berghuis and Janssen replaced Davy Klaassen and Memphis Depay, just in case you were wondering.
67 min: Just on for the Netherlands, Steven Berghuis and Vincent Janssen get in behind the Qatar defence and practically walk the ball into the net, with Berghuis stroking home from about one yard out after having the ball sqaured his way by Janssen. Their efforts are in vain as Cody Gakpo handled the ball in the build-up. Referee Bakary Gassama disallows the goal after consulting his pitchside monitor.
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64 min: Qatari triple-substitution: Ali Assadalla, Karim Boudiaf and Mohammed Muntari on for Al Haydos, Madibo and Hatem.
62 min: Klaassen loses the ball in midfield and Qatar advance down the left flank. The cross comes in but it’s too close to Netherlands goalkeeper Andries Noppart, who grabs it to his chest.
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60 min: Pedro Correia crosses into a Dutch penalty area that is uncharacteristically well populated by Qataris. Sadly, he overhits his delivery and sends the ball sailing out towards the left flank.
56 min: Abdelkarim Hassan crosses from the byline but once again there is a depressingly conspicuous absence of Qataris in the Dutch penalty area. It’s maddening.
54 min: Afif is played in behind the Dutch defence to the byline. Upon controlling the ball, he takes a look up and realises that none of his teammates are in the box. Instead of crossing just for the sake of it, he plays the ball backwards and another promising Qatari move breaks down.
53 min: Nathan Ake has just been booked for something or other. Apologies, I didn’t see why.
49 min: Davy Klaassen sent in a cross from the left, which Boualem Khoukhi tried to head clear. The Qatar defender succeeded only in flicking the ball to Depay at the far post and his shot from a few yards out was brilliantly blocked by Barsham. With three Qatari defenders around him in the penalty area, De Jong was the quickest – arguably only – player to react and had the simplest of tasks in prodding the ball home.
GOAL! Netherlands 2-0 Qatar (De Jong 48)
49 min: Frenkie De Jong scores from close range on the follow-up after Qatar goalkeeper Meshaal Barsham had saved brilliantly from Memphis Depay.
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47 min: Depay and Gakpo try to link up just outside the Qatar penalty area but contrive to give the ball away. Qatar get forward and Ismail Mohamed drills in a low cross from the right. Nathan Ake intercepts and clears.
Second half: Netherlands 1-0 Qatar
46 min: Qatar get the second half started and immediately win a free-kick when Afif is grappled to the ground by Denzel Dumfries out by the touchline. Afif sends the ball into the Dutch penalty area, where Nathan Ake heads it out for a throw-in.
Half-time: Netherlands 1-0 Qatar
Peep! Bakary Gassama signals the end of the first half and the players adjourn to the dressing-rooms. The Netherlands lead courtesy of Cody Gakpo’s third goal in as many group games and currently look set fair to top Group A at stumps.
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45+2 min: The Dutch are playing the closing moments of this first half at near walking pace. Memphis Depay pulls a volley wide from distance after pouncing on a flick from Klaassen. We get a close up of the Netherlands striker on his first start in this tournament after a spell out with a serious hamstring injury and he looks like e is blowing out of his nether regions.
45+1 min: Akrim Afif is sent haring down the left wing but is unable to keep the ball from deep in play.
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45 min: We’ll have three minutes of added time.
44 min: The Netherlands continue to dominate and are in almost total control of this game. Elsewhere in Group A, Senegal have just gone a goal up against Ecuador and would finish second behind the Dutch as things stand.
40 min: Hassan gallops down the left flank again, cuts inside and tries to play Almoez Abdulla in behind. He misplaces his pass and a promising attack breaks down.
39 min: Assim Madibo is penalised for a foul on Memphis Depay and gets a ticking-off from referee Bakary Gassama. The free-kick is played wide to Daley Blind and Netherlands continue to press and probe around the edge of the Qatar penalty area.
37 min: Qatar are starting to look a little threatening and have been playing quite good football for the past few minutes. They’re clearly not anywhere near the same level as the Netherlands but at last, over half an hour into the game, they’re finally having a go.
34 min: Abdelkarim Hasan is sent on his way down the left touchline courtesy of a nice flick and sends a cross into the Dutch penalty area. There is not a single Qatari player there to trouble Virgil van Dijk as he tidys up for the Netherlands.
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33 min: Qatar get the ball out of their own half, Pedro Correia going on a marauding sortie deep into Dutch territory before running into traffic.
30 min: The Netherlands continue to pile on the pressure, pressing and probing in search of another opening on the edge of the final third.
27 min: It’s a tidy finish for Gakpo, who was played in courtesy of a neat flick from Davy Klaassen. With three defenders in close proximity, he picked his spot and buried the ball.
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GOAL! Netherlands 1-0 Qatar (Gakpo 27)
Netherlands lead! Cody Gakpo scores for the third consecutive game in this tournament, sidefooting home into the bottom right-hand corner.
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24 min: From that corner, Qatar win another, with Van Dijk putting the ball out of play. The ball’s played toward the penalty spot, where Abdelkarim Hassan tries to volley it goalwards. Over the bar. The idea was good but the execution wasn’t great.
22 min: Qatar win themselves a corner after their best passage of play thus far. Ahmed beat Dumfries down the left, pulled the ball inside for Al Haydos and his cross was put out for a corner.
20 min: Homam Ahmed blatantly slaps the ball with his hand as it travelled over his head but avoids a yellow card for as deliberate a handball as you will ever see.
19 min: Netherlands corner. The ball’s swung into the Qatar penalty area and Klaassen gets his head to it, but only just it. He’s unable to steer the ball goalwards and it fizzes over the bar.
17 min: Memphis Depay is penalised for backing into Pedro Correia on the edge of the Qatar penalty area as he tried to receive a pass. It’s a harsh decision and he voices his unhappiness with the referee.
16 min: Denzel Dumfries pulls the ball back into the Qatar penalty area from the byline but it’s intercepted by Hasan Al Haydos, who puts it out for a corner. Cody Gakpo’s inswingert is headed clear.
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14 min: Frenkie De Jong shoots from the edge of the Qatar penalty area but his shot is unwittingly blocked by Davy Klaassen. The ball breaks to Depay, who shoots high over the bar when hitting the target looked a formality.
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12 min: Daley Blind gets in behind the Qatar defence, played in by Davy Klaassen. He pulls the ball back to Klaasen, whose shot is blocked. The ball breaks back in the direction of Blind, who shoots from a tight angle when perhaps he might have been better served by squaring it for Memphis Depay. Qatar goalkeeper Meshaal Barsham saves.
11 min: Akrim Afif wins a free-kick for his side deep in Qatar territory, going to ground in a thicket of Dutch players despite nobody appearing to touch him. Qatar clear the ball upfield.
9 min: Another clash of heads! This time it’s Daley Blind and Ismail Mohamed, who ships his second blow to the noggin in these early stages. Blindseemed to come out the worst of this particular collison but both man appear fit to continue.
8 min: Now Qatar’s left wing-back Homam Ahmed goes to ground in need of treatment after a clash of heads as he contested a high ball.
7 min: There’s a short break in play as Qatar right wing-back Ismail Mohamed recevies treatment after getting a bang on the head.
4 min: The Netherlands cut through the Qatari defence like a hot knife through butter. Memphis Depay, who shapes to shoot but is crowded off the ball. It breaks in the direction of Davy Klaassen, who stretches but is unable to make contact.
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2 min: An early chance for Qatar, as they steal the ball in midfield and advance. Abdelaziz Hatem tries his luck from distance and his shot is on target. It doesn’t trouble Andries Noppert in the Dutch goal unduly.
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Netherlands v Qatar is go ...
1 min: The Netherlands get the ball rolling and almost immediately play it long over the top from deep. It bounces in the penalty area with Memphis Depay in hot pursuit. He stretches every sinew but is unable to hook it goalwards. Goal kick.
Not long now: The teams march out on to the pitch led by captains Virgil van Dijk and Hasan Al Haydos. They line up either side of Gambian referee Bakary Gassama and his team of match officials and it’s time for the national anthems. The players of Qatar wear white shirts, shorts and socks. The Dutch are a vision in orange. Although this is Qatar’s final game in this competition, there seem to be an awful lot of empty seats in the stadium.
Those teams: As is his wont, Louis van Gaal makes fools of those of us who thought he’d start Marten de Roon and Memphis Depay on the bench again. Memphis starts up front alongside Cody Gakpo, with Steven Bergwijn dropping to the bench. De Roon comes into midfield in place of Teun Koopmeiners.
Qatar coach Felix Sanchez makes one change, as far as I can see. Karim Boudiaf drops out of midfield and is replaced by Abdelaziz Hatem.
Netherlands v Qatar line-ups
Netherlands: Andries Noppert, Daley Blind, Nathan Ake, Virgil van Dijk (c), Jurrien Timber, Denzel Dumfries, Marten de Roon, Davy Klaassen, Frenkie de Jong, Cody Gakpo, Memphis Depay.
Qatar: Meshaal Barsham, Pedro Miguel, Abdelkarim Hassan, Abdelaziz Hatim, Hassan Al-Haydos (c), Akram Afif, Ismail Mohamad, Homam Ahmed, Assim Madibo, Boualem Khoukhi, Almoez Ali.
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Louis van Gaal: “I think you always have to identify the goal, the purpose for which you are here and then you can work your way toward that purpose,” said the Netherlands manager when asked about his pre-tournament announcement that the Netherlands would win the tournament. “If you say ‘Well, the round of 16 is enough, the quarter-finals are enough’, that isn’t the right way to do things. The right way to do things is to think you will become champions. I never said that we’re going to become world champions, but that we can become this.”
Felix Sanchez: “When you play against a team such as the Netherlands, you don’t need any motivation,” said Qatar’s manager in his pre-match press conference. “It’s a challenge for our players to face such a team. This was a very demanding group for us. We’ve competed with our ups and downs. We’d have preferred to be in a better situation.
“I think these players have achieved a great deal over the last years. Now we need to be aware that to compete at this level, we are still lagging behind. I think if we work at this on a daily basis, gradually we will be closer to this level. I don’t feel disappointed or embarrassed. The World Cup is the most demanding competition, and only a few can be here. We are still slightly behind. The country will continue working so that the next time Qatar comes to a World Cup, hopefully soon, we’ll be able to compete better than we did this time.”
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Today’s match officials
Referee: Bakary Gassama
Assistant referees: Elvis Noupue and Mahmoud Abouelregal
Fourth official: Ma Ning
Video Assistant Referee: Redouane Jiye
Early team news
Dutch players Memphis Depay and Marten De Roon came into the tournament nursing injuries but both featured off the bench in the Netherlands’ draw with Ecuador but may start on the bench again today. A goalscorer in both of his nations in this tournament so far, Cody Gakpo is likely to start again.
Having seen the manner in which he and his PSV Eindhoven teammate Xavi Simons tore Arsenal’s defence apart at the Philips Stadion earlier this seaason, I’m hopeful that Van Gaal will give the exciting but as yet uncapped 19-year-old his international debut at some point this afternoon.
Qatar manager Felix Sanchez has a fully fit squad of players to choose from and may hand Mohammed Muntari a start ahead of Assin Madibo after the Al Duhail striker came off the bench to score his side’s only goal of the tournament so far against Senegal.
Group A: Netherlands v Qatar
The giant Bedouin tent that is Al Bayt Stadium plays host to one of two Group A games being played simultaneously this afternoon. The Netherlands go into this game knowing that just a draw will guarantee their passage to the knockout rounds, while Qatar are playing for nothing more than pride as they try to avoid the acute ignominy of becoming the first host nation in World Cup history to exit the tournament without securing so much as a single point.
In the extremely unlikely event that they beat the Dutch, Louis van Gaal’s side could still advance to the Round of 16 if Ecuador beat Senegal in the group’s other match. Kick-off in Al Khor is at 3pm (GMT) but stay tuned in the meantime for team news and build-up.
