Ronald Koeman is more than satisfied with the Dutch national team after the 8-0 victory on Tuesday in the World Cup qualifier against Malta. The national coach saw his team in Groningen do what he had hoped for.
“You can’t do better than we did today,” Koeman said after the match at his press conference in De Euroborg. “From the first to the last minute, we gave maximum effort and put pressure on them. And we scored good goals.”
By scoring eight times, Oranje achieved their biggest victory since the 11-0 win against San Marino in 2011. “It doesn’t happen very often that such a large score is achieved,” Koeman said. “That deserves a big compliment.”
The energy with which Oranje played was crucial for the big score, according to Koeman. “We have more quality than Malta, that’s clear. But it only becomes 8-0 if you keep running. And keep putting pressure on them. That’s what we did.”
‘Zo blijft Memphis hongerig’
Koeman had enjoyed several players, he said. Of course, Memphis Depay, who scored twice and equaled Robin van Persie as Oranje’s all-time top scorer. But also Donyell Malen, who replaced Memphis and also scored two goals.
“It was a great night for Memphis. Should I have left him on? No, why would I. Let him score his 51st goal next time and get the record all to himself. Then we play at home against Poland. That keeps him hungry.”
“Moreover, Malen certainly didn’t do badly as Memphis’s replacement,” Koeman continued. “He made a good impression.”
‘Aan onze stand verplicht eerste te worden’
After Oranje’s monster score, there was more good news. Poland, the biggest competitor of the Netherlands in Group G, lost 2-1 in Finland. The Netherlands is still flawless after two matches.
Koeman: “Prior to this qualification, I said that we are obliged by our position to finish first in the group. We are on schedule.”
Only the number one in the group qualifies directly for the World Cup next year in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The numbers two and the strongest countries of the Nations League play in the play-offs for the last European World Cup tickets.