TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Netherlands avoided defeat against Greece in their 2026/27 UEFA Nations League Matchday 3 fixture in Thessaloniki on Thursday, October 1.
After falling two goals behind, Oranje fought back to force a 2-2 draw with goals from Virgil van Dijk and Tijjani Reijnders. This draw earned the Netherlands an extra point and lifted them to second place in Group A2, according to the official UEFA website.
As reported by ANTARA, Greece played aggressively from the start. The hosts even scored through Christos Tzolis in the 13th minute, but the goal was disallowed for offside. Greece's pressure finally paid off in the 23rd minute. Sporting CP forward Fotis Ioannidis put the hosts ahead 1-0.
The Netherlands, managed by new coach Xavi Hernandez, tried to respond. However, Greece nearly doubled their lead in the 37th minute. Bart Verbruggen made a crucial save to deny the hosts.
Greece finally scored a second goal just before the first half ended. Ioannidis won the ball on the right flank before delivering a cross that Georgios Masouras finished from close range. Greece held the 2-0 lead until halftime.
The Netherlands played more aggressively after the break. The Oranje's efforts to narrow the deficit paid off in the 59th minute.
Virgil van Dijk scored with a header after receiving a cross from Joey Veerman, narrowing the score to 1–2 for the Netherlands. Six minutes later, Denzel Dumfries scored a goal to equalize. However, the goal was disallowed because he was offside.
The Netherlands kept up the pressure during the final ten minutes. Their efforts finally paid off at the end of the match. Tijjani Reijnders rescued Oranje by scoring with a close-range volley. The goal leveled the score at 2-2, a result that held until the final whistle.
Lineup
Greece (4-4-2): Konstantinos Tzolakis; Kostas Tsimikas, Panagiotis Retsos, Konstantinos Mavropanos, Manolis Saliakas; Christos Tzolis, Thanasis Androutsos, Dimitrios Kourbelis, Konstantinos Karetsas; Fotis Ioannidis, Vangelis Pavlidis.
Netherlands (4-3-3): Bart Verbruggen; Micky van de Ven, Virgil van Dijk, Jurrien Timber, Denzel Dumfries; Quinten Timber, Guus Til, Joey Veerman; Ruben van Bommel, Mexx Meerdink, Crysencio Summerville.
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