KANSAS CITY, June 26 — The Netherlands surged into the World Cup round of 32 as Group F winners with a comfortable 3-1 victory over Tunisia on a rain-soaked today, setting up a first knockout-stage clash with Morocco in Monterrey on Monday.
A thunderstorm warning cleared just in time for kickoff, but there was no delay to the Dutch on the pitch, who made the fastest start to a World Cup match since 2002 when they seized a 2-0 lead in just over six minutes.
The Netherlands capitalised on another error-strewn display from opponents whose calamitous tournament came to a fitting end after heavy defeats to Japan and Sweden and a coach change between their first two matches.
Some of the more than 68,000 fans in attendance left the stadium before the final whistle, as the result looked beyond doubt, as heavy rain and the weather alert did little to disrupt the match or dampen their enthusiasm.
Tunisia almost struck first in the second minute when Ismael Gharbi missed a clear chance, but the Netherlands moved ahead moments later as the North Africans’ captain Ellyes Skhiri turned Denzel Dumfries’ cross into his own net.
They doubled their advantage in the seventh minute, when Brian Brobbey grabbed his third goal of the tournament, finishing from close range after Virgil van Dijk headed a free kick back across goal.
The early burst gave way to a slower tempo, with the Dutch rarely troubled even as Tunisia threatened to get back into the contest in the second half, when Hazem Mastouri headed in Hannibal Mejbri’s corner to reduce the deficit in the 54th minute.
Tunisia’s momentum was quickly curtailed as the Netherlands restored their two-goal cushion eight minutes laterwhen Jan Paul van Hecke powered home a header from Tijjani Reijnders’ corner, with the ball deflecting off Anis Slimane on its way into the net.
Reijnders later struck the crossbar as the Dutch continued to press but failed to add to their tally.
The scoreline allowed coach Ronald Koeman to take off some of his starters ahead of the round-of-32 clash in Mexico, with Brobbey, Cody Gakpo and Frenkie de Jong all substituted in the second half.
Memphis Depay, the Netherlands’ all-time leading goalscorer, came on in the 77th minute and went close with an acrobatic bicycle kick.
The defeat capped a disappointing tournament for Tunisia, who conceded 12 goals across three matches despite arriving with a reputation for defensive solidity after they cruised through qualifying without conceding a single goal.
Coach Herve Renard was rushed in to replace the sacked Sabri Lamouchi after a 5-1 defeat to Sweden in their opener but was unable to change their fortunes. — Reuters
