Social News XYZ     

Depay steals show as Oranje thrash Belarus

Depay steals show as Oranje thrash Belarus

Rotterdam, March 22 (IANS) Memphis Depay was the star for The Netherlands as they beat Belarus 4-0 here to kick off their Euro 2020 qualifying campaign with a win.

The Lyon forward scored twice on Thursday and assisted another two goals as the Dutch continued their improved recent form, having missed out on the last two major international tournaments, reports Efe news.

 

The Nations League finalists, led by Ronald Koeman, showed they are likely to be among the leading contenders for the European championships next year with a convincing performance.

They opened the scoring inside the first minute when Memphis pounced on a sloppy backpass to round the goalkeeper and finish from a tight angle.

In the 21st minute he turned provider, setting up Georginio Wijnaldum with a deft flick inside the six-yard box for the Liverpool midfielder, who had only the goalkeeper to beat.

Wijnaldum then won a penalty after he was brought down by a clumsy challenge from Mikhail Sivakov, with Depay converting the spot kick with a driven shot into the corner.

The former Manchester United winger then set up his team's fourth and final goal when he crossed for Liverpool central defender Virgil Van Dijk to head in with less than five minutes left.

"It was an ideal start, scoring in the first minute", Koeman said, who added that his players became too complacent afterwards.

"I think the players thought they had already won, because our play became too nonchalant. That's not what I want to see. The second half was much better. We had more control", he said.

Koeman's charges face fierce rivals and neighbours Germany in a highly anticipated Group C match on Sunday.

Facebook Comments
Depay steals show as Oranje thrash Belarus

About Gopi

Gopi Adusumilli is a Programmer. He is the editor of SocialNews.XYZ and President of AGK Fire Inc.

He enjoys designing websites, developing mobile applications and publishing news articles on current events from various authenticated news sources.

When it comes to writing he likes to write about current world politics and Indian Movies. His future plans include developing SocialNews.XYZ into a News website that has no bias or judgment towards any.

He can be reached at gopi@socialnews.xyz

%d bloggers like this: