No going Dutch in Rotterdam
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It was a revamped Netherlands that we saw in the UEFA Nations League, after their failure to qualify for the 2018 World Cup.
After the qualification debacle which saw the Dutch fail to even make the play offs, Advocaat was fired and Koeman was brought in - and what a difference he has made.
Lets look at his competitive record since he began:
- France vs. The Netherlands (2-1)
- The Netherlands vs. Germany (3-0)
- The Netherlands vs. France (2-0)
- Germany vs. The Netherlands (2-2)
Considering their only loss came away in Paris to a team who had won the World Cup less than two months previously, his record has been pretty good.
As anyone who watched these games can testify, it was their two performances at home that really stood out. They were completely dominant in their 3-0 rout of Germany and in full control against France.
Wijnaldum, Depay and van Dijk scored the goals, but it was their defensive solidity which really stood out. Despite Germany enjoying 60% of possession in their game, they were only able to muster 4 shots on target.
Virgil van Dijk has been imperious at the back for both the Netherlands and Liverpool - despite a rare mistake against Fulham over the weekend - and I don't see him being troubled by this Belarusian attack.
Belarus
'The White Wings' as they are known are currently 78th in the FIFA rankings, sandwiched in-between Uganda and Canada.
But Belarus are no mugs, they have actually picked up some decent results in recent years and can prove really difficult to score against. Take their World Cup qualifier in Paris in 2017 where they enjoyed 12 shots to France's 13 and were unlucky to lose the match 2-1. They also won their Nations League D Group 2.
However, both these facts come with huge caveats. Firstly, the Belarusian league ended in December 2018. This means that only a handful of players will have had played any competitive domestic football since then. Of course players of BATE Borisov, of which there are six in the first team, will have played two matches in the Europa League. Secondly, their Nations League group included Luxembourg, Moldova and San Marino and if you look at their results against these teams they show a defensive solidity, but perhaps not that much going forward.
Belarus vs. San Marino (5-0)
Belarus vs. Moldova (0-0)
Belarus vs. Luxembourg (2-0)
Belarus vs. Moldova (0-0)
Luxembourg vs. Belarus (0-2)
San Marino vs. Belarus (0-2)
The only team that you could claim to be decent opposition is Moldova and they drew 0-0 in both matches. They may have put five past the likes of San Marino, but Belarus is a country of almost 10 million, and San Marino around 30,000 - it was a mismatch from the start.
Up front Belarus will play Anton Saroka, who currently plays in Belgium for Lokeren, he currently has 0 goals in 8 appearances. I just don't see him get past Van Dijk and co.
Betting tip
The odds may be nothing to write home about, but I am really confident that the Netherlands will have full control in Rotterdam. I just don't see them conceding. I will therefore bet on a clean sheet at odds of 4/7 with Bet365 (the only bookie currently offering this bet).
