Cody Gakpo leaves Tottenham star red-faced in message to Arne Slot as Netherlands beat Romania
ROMANIA 0-3 HOLLAND: Liverpool marksman Cody Gakpo was the star of the show as Ronald Koeman's side put underdogs Romania to the sword as the inspirational underdog's heroic Euro 2024 dream ended in merciless fashion in Munich
Cody Gakpo played like a man possessed to help book the Netherlands' place in the quarter-finals of Euro 2024 via an emphatic 3-0 victory over Romania in Munich.
The red-hot Liverpool attacker was a persistent threat all afternoon at the Allianz Arena as he tormented his blue-haired marker and Brighton target Andrei Ratiu from the left flank, scoring and assisting for Ronald Koeman's rejuvenated side.
Gakpo broke the deadlock on 20 minutes when he cut inside Romania right-back Ratiu and slammed home inside the near post in venomous fashion. It was his third goal of the tournament meaning he is now the joint top-goalscorer at Euro 2024 alongside Georgia hotshot Georges Mikautadze.
If Gakpo maintains this level of potency, he will undoubtedly feel like a new signing for Liverpool this summer - and an upgrade on Luis Diaz - following the arrival of fellow Dutchman Arne Slot.
While he still put credible numbers, 16 goals and six assists, on the board for the Reds in all competitions last season, he struggled to maintain consistency due to frequent positional rotation. But on this evidence, there can be no doubt that his best position is when he's flying inside from the left and unleashing shots at will.
Stefan de Vrij had Romania goalkeeper Florin Nita scrambling when he headed against the side netting before Tottenham centre-back Radu Dragusin came to his nation's rescue, blocking Denzel Dumfries' pass across goal to Memphis Depay.
Holland were undeniably wasteful and could have been out of sight had they been more clinical in the final third. Romanian substitute Bogdan Racovitan dallies trying to shepherd the ball out of play, Dumfries robbed him blind and found Xavi Simons, who couldn't adjust his feet in time to finish.
Dumfries' athleticism was a persistent thorn in Romania's backline and the marauding Inter Milan wing-back appeared to be tugged back at the far post by Ianis Hagi, however, German referee Felix Zwayer wasn't interested.
Gakpo led Holland's relentless pursuit of a killer second after the interval when he let fly from 25-yards, stinging Nita's palms, before seeing a goal chalked off by VAR for offside. Yet the setback only appeared to spur him on as he combined admirably with midfield sub Joey Veerman, who curled narrowly wide as he chased a moment of redemption following his embarrassing 35th-minute withdrawal in the 3-2 defeat to Austria in Berlin.
Sub Donyell Malen then finally doubled Holland's advantage when Gakpo refused to give up on what seemed a lost cause, Romanian defensive stalwart Dragusin assumed the ball was heading out of the play but the Liverpool man swooped in, squaring to his grateful team-mate to turn in.
Malen then added gloss to the scoreline when he collected the ball from the left, danced inside and smashed home with aplomb before questionably celebrating in front of Romania's dejected supporters. This was an impressive response from Oranje, even if they did not need to get out of second gear, following a wretched showing against Austria in Berlin. Now there should be internal confidence that they possess the tools, momentum and ambition to at least reach the semi-finals.
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