Agency Report Published 13 June 2021
Netherlands take on Ukraine in Group C of Euro 2020 at Amsterdam Arena on Sunday.
These two nations will be expected to progress to the knockout stages, so this meeting could play a key part in determining which side tops the group.
Netherlands bounced back from a disappointing 2-2 draw with Scotland in their first warm-up friendly by comfortably dispatching Georgia 3-0 last weekend.
Memphis Depay, who bagged a brace against the Scots, continued his fine goalscoring form by converting from the penalty spot in the 10th minute. The Lyon forward scored six goals in his last six games of the season in Ligue 1, and will carry much of his country’s attacking burden.
However, in Wout Weghorst, Depay appears to have a suitable strike partner. The Wolfsburg forward struck 20 times in the Bundesliga this season.
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Ukraine, meanwhile, won both of their warm-up friendlies against Northern Ireland and Cyprus without conceding a goal.
Andriy Shevchenko’s side had not kept a clean sheet in any of their six prior outings, so the former AC Milan striker will be relieved that his defence appear to be building a solid platform ahead of the tournament.
Having impressively topped their qualifying group ahead of Portugal and Serbia, anything short of progressing to the knockout stages for the first time in a European Championship would have to be considered a serious failure given that Group C is widely perceived as the weakest group at this summer’s tournament.
However, Ukraine have certainly not been handed an easy start with a trip to the Netherlands, so avoiding defeat may be seen as a positive step towards their primary aim of reaching the last 16.
