It seemed for a moment on Sunday evening that the ‘Miracle of Basel’ was possible for the Dutch team. But after a strong first half against France, the European Championship dream collapsed after halftime. “We gave it away.”
In the St. Jakob-Park in Basel, the Dutch team had to win by three goals against title contender France to reach the quarterfinals. After the debacle against England (4-0 defeat), this seemed an impossible task, but at halftime, even the biggest critics started to believe in an upset.
France took the lead in the 22nd minute, but the Dutch team had the perfect response, equalizing two minutes later with a beautiful shot by Victoria Pelova. When the French scored an own goal just before halftime, the miracle seemed to be in the making.
At that point, coach Andries Jonker’s team needed two more goals for a quarterfinal spot. Given the balance of play, this didn’t seem impossible. “When you play such a first half, you really get goosebumps. Then we went all out,” said Lynn Wilms in the mixed zone afterward.
Daniëlle van de Donk was “super proud” of the first half. Jonker was also full of praise for the first half. “They absolutely went through the wall. We made a statement.”
‘This hurts’
But after halftime, nothing remained of that rosy reality. France found a new gear, and the Dutch team was outpaced on all sides. It seemed as if France had started a new match, while the Dutch players were dazed and made mistake after mistake.
‘Les Bleues’ made the difference after an hour. The equalizer was on the board in the 61st minute, and within six minutes, the score became 2-3 and 2-4. “Something broke,” said Jonker. At that moment, the Dutch team needed no fewer than five goals to advance. In injury time, Sakine Kharchaoui even scored the 2-5 from the penalty spot.
What went wrong? Captain Sherida Spitse says that the first half cost “an enormous amount of energy.” According to Van de Donk, the Dutch team couldn’t sustain that in the second half because they were less fit than France. She had no answer to the question of why that is. “The technical staff will have to figure that out.”
“It’s a shame that we gave it away so easily in those ten, fifteen minutes,” said Spitse. “Otherwise, we really play decent football. But those moments can’t happen because you know you’ll be slaughtered against such countries.” Janssen: “It hurts that you have to go home this way.”
‘Noise’ due to changes in lineup and system
According to Wilms, there was a lack of continuity in the lineup and the system that the Dutch team plays, both in the lead-up to and at the European Championship. Jonker chose to experiment regularly in those areas towards the end of the tournament.
This was partly out of necessity due to injuries, but also often a conscious choice. For the European Championship match against France, Jonker even made four changes to his lineup. As a result, Wilms got a starting spot for the first time in this tournament.
Wilms doesn’t want to criticize Jonker, but she does think that continuity underlies the failed European Championship. “In my opinion, there was some noise because there were many changes in lineup and system. This is my fourth final tournament, and the team lacked stability in my opinion. As a result, it may not have gone completely well.”
Spitse remains slightly more cautious but admits that continuity makes the game easier. “It could be that that was lacking. Ultimately, everyone knows what is expected of her, however we play. But you can say that you have more automatisms with each other.”
Painful conclusion: ‘We are not world-class’
After the 2-5 defeat, Jonker couldn’t help but conclude that the Dutch team has definitively lost its connection to the world’s top. In the lead-up to the European Championship, the Dutch team already lost by painful numbers to Germany (4-0) and was already too small for England (4-0) at the final tournament.
The last victory over a top country dates back to September 26, 2023. Almost two years ago, the Dutch team won 2-1 against England. That was even with an offside goal.
“You would like to know if I still think we are world-class. No, we are not,” says Jonker. “Because we lose 4-0 in Germany, we lose 4-0 to England, and 5-2 to France. Then you don’t belong. Period. I remain convinced that the potential of this team is enormous, but at the moment we are falling short.”
The Dutch team will have another chance to compete with the world’s top in two years if it qualifies for the 2027 World Cup in Brazil. Andries Jonker will certainly not be around for that, as this European Championship was his last task as coach.