Depay shines as Netherlands drop Austria 2-0

Sports Desk, Jun 17 (EFE).- The Netherlands qualified for the Euro 2020 knockout stage with a 2-0 victory Thursday against Austria at Johan Cruyff Arena in Amsterdam.

With 6 points, the Dutch are assured of winning Group C regardless of the outcome of the third and final match of the preliminary stage by virtue of their head-to-head record against both Austria and Ukraine.

Austria went behind in the 11th minute as the result of a clumsy foul by recent Real Madrid acquisition David Alaba against Denzel Dumfries.

While the referee was ready to let the incident pass, a VAR review showed the Dumfries went down after contact inside the box and a penalty was awarded.

Former Dutch national coach and current Barcelona boss Ronald Koeman looked on from the stands as striker Memphis Depay, whose signing with the Catalan club is said to be imminent, converted from the spot to make it 1-0.

Depay went on to create several chances and launched the counter-attack that led in the 67th minute to a goal by Dumfries, his second of the tournament.

One of Austria’s most dangerous attackers, Marko Arnautovic, missed the contest due to suspension over a verbal altercation with North Macedonia players in the first match, and the Central European side managed only one shot on target against the Dutch. EFE jaf/dr