Anschede (AFP)
The semi-finals of the third edition of the European Nations League football competition brings together the Netherlands and Croatia on the one hand, and Spain and Italy on the other hand, as the four teams seek to follow in the footsteps of Portugal and France, who were crowned in the first and second editions, respectively.
The Dutch national team will host its Croatian guest at the “De Kuip” stadium in Rotterdam tomorrow “Wednesday” in the first semi-final, while the Spain national team will play against Italy in Enschede on Thursday, before the final match scheduled for Sunday.
The Netherlands and Spain national teams are seeking to restore European prestige, and Croatia for the first coronation, while the men of Italian coach Roberto Mancini want to compensate for the disappointment of not qualifying for the World Cup in Qatar last year after winning the European Cup in the summer of 2021.
The Nations League was organized for the first time in 2018 with the aim of adding more competition to the matches of the European teams instead of the friendly matches that often lack the element of excitement, provided that four teams qualify for the semi-finals from the top of their groups within the first classification.
The Netherlands, which reached the quarter-finals of the World Cup in Qatar, culminated in its last major title in 1988 by winning the European Cup led by a golden generation, with Marco van Basten, Ruud Gullit, Frank Rijkaard, and the current coach of the orange team, Ronald Koeman, who said: “We can write history.”
He added, “It was always about the European Cup or the World Cup, but now the Nations League has been added.”
And he added, “They are still talking about 1988, when (the tournament) included eight teams, that says it all.”
Koeman is considered the godfather of the “Mills” team’s arrival to the final of the first edition of the Nations League in 2019 (losing to Portugal 0-1) before he decided to give up his position to train the Spanish club Barcelona (2020-2021), to return again to take over his duties in January early this year. , hoping that the land factor will be a motivational in the expected coronation.
“The players are pressing themselves and performing better as a team,” the 60-year-old coach told the official website of the European Union, UEFA.
The Dutch national team qualified for the semi-finals without defeat, after finishing top of Group D, which included Belgium, Poland and Wales. He scored 5 wins against a draw and scored 16 points.
The Netherlands is aware of the difficulty of its task in facing a Croatian team that proved its metal in the World Cup in Qatar by occupying third place and eliminating Brazil, one of the most prominent teams for the title, on its way to the semi-finals.
The Nations League will be for many Croatian players, most notably the “maestro” of Real Madrid’s Spanish midfielder Luka Modric (37 years), a last chance on the international stage to grab a continental title, which is something that Croatia has never achieved, despite its successful career in the World Cup Russia 2018 ( Runner-up came to France) and Qatar.
Croatia avenged its loss against France in the World Cup final, by defeating it in Paris on its way to occupying the top of Group A, by a point from Denmark (13 vs. 12), while Austria occupied the bottom of the standings.
Similar to the Netherlands, which lacks the efforts of its defender Matthijs de Ligt by injury, coach Zlatko Dalic will miss defender Joshko Gvardiol for the same reason.
The Spanish national team is competing against Italy, armed with its victory over the “Azzurri” in its own home at the “San Siro” stadium in the semi-finals of the 2021 edition, when it finished runner-up against France (losing 1-2).
The two teams faced each other on several occasions, including the Euro 2020 semi-finals, where the Italians prevailed on penalties, on their way to encircle their necks with gold at the expense of England, with the same scenario at the famous Wembley Stadium.
The Spanish national team crushed its Italian counterpart 4-0 in the 2012 European Cup final, when it crowned its last major title.
Coach Luis de la Fuente’s men are going through their continental entitlement under great pressure, after losing to Scotland 0-2 in March during the 2024 European Cup qualifiers.
#European #Nations #League #Restoring #prestige #making #World #Cup #absence