2:3 against Austria

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Virgil van Dijk was in a fit after the defeat against the Austrians.

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

"This is incomprehensible!" Virgil van Dijk was furious after the 3:2 defeat in the European Championship group game against Austria and harshly criticized his team. Here is what the Dutchman had to say:

Virgil van Dijk (Netherlands captain): "We started the game weak, in possession and in tackles. Then you fall behind in the game. We lacked energy. We talked about it at half-time. That's incomprehensible in a final tournament. I have no explanation for it at the moment. If we want to achieve something at this European Championship, something has to change very quickly. We are all responsible for that."

Ronald Koeman (Netherlands coach): "I am ultimately responsible. I put this team together because I thought it was the best. But that wasn't the case. I'm also disappointed in myself that we started (the games) like that. I thought the start was a poor performance, but not the whole game. We knew they were playing with a high back, so we said: Close the pass line. Then the back line has to hold. But if one or the other doesn't happen, then that's what happens. During the game, I also tried to say that the center backs should catch the advancing full backs. Communication was also one of the bad things, especially at the start of the game."

Ronald Koeman

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

Cody Gakpo (Netherlands goalscorer): "We are not happy. Harsh words from the coach and the players. Maybe it was the sharpness, we have to analyze it first. We got to play soccer. Things went better in the second half, but it wasn't enough."