UEFA Nations League: 5 countries that shone and 5 countries that flopped

Hit #1 Netherlands

Memphis Depay has been on fire

The proponents of total football and the nation that gave us illustrious names such as Cruyff and Marco van Basten, the Dutch failed to qualify for the last EURO and World Cups consecutively and had reached the nadir of its football just four years on from their impressive third-place finish at the 2014 World Cup.

The Oranje have changed multiple coaches in the last few years in a bid to get it right, and they struggled to replace ageing stars such as Huntelaar, Sneijder and Arjen Robben, which was a bit of an anomaly considering Holland’s traditional standing as a hub for producing young talents.

Ronald Koeman was appointed a manager in late 2017 after the debacles of their World Cup qualification, and the 55-year old has gone about his job very steadily, integrating a young side and slowly forging a solid side.

His tenure has seen the Netherlands depart from their usual free-flowing aesthetic style, instead focusing on pragmatism, and even though results were initially haphazard, they have greatly seen an upturn in fortunes in recent weeks., with improvements from Memphis Depay as well as Quincy Jones.

They were drawn alongside the last two world champions in Germany and France, and on account of their recent struggles, it was expected that the Netherlands would be the whipping boys of the group.

They kicked off their Nations League campaign with a 2-1 loss away to France but bounced back from that defeat to inflict a 3-0 defeat on a struggling Germany. They got a measure of revenge over France with a 2-0 victory over the reigning world champions at home and headed into their last match against Germany knowing all they needed was a draw to progress to the final four.

They went behind to a two-goal deficit in the first half, but rallied back with two goals deep in the match, as Quincy Jones was handed a goal before Virgil Van Dijk scored a stunning equalizer with an exquisite volley right at the end to send his nation to the semi-final of the inaugural Nations League.

Netherlands have fallen from their previous highs in recent years, but with Koeman at the helm and performances of Depay and Van Dijk on the field, there is genuine reason for optimism for the Dutch.