Preview
The round of 16 is underway in the European Championship, with one of the unexpected title contenders for Euro 2020, the Netherlands, gearing up for an interesting clash with the Czech Republic. All eyes will be on this Puskás Aréna showdown, which will kick off at 12 p.m. ET, as the Oranje aim to make the quarter-final stage of this competition for the first time in 13 years.
While the Dutch are a continental giant, they headed into this tournament with much mystery. Frank de Boer was appointed as the successor to Ronald Koeman, the coach who steered Holland back to a reputable side, but his start at the helm of the Oranje wasn't ideal. The 51-year-old tactician kick started his reign with a four-game winless streak, with more recent bumps leading many to believe that it's too soon to be dreaming of silverware.
However, the performance of Depay and Co. in the group stage has raised expectations, with fans now pondering whether the greatest footballing nation to have never won a World Cup can go all the way. Their opening game was a dramatic 3-2 victory over Ukraine, with Netherlands throwing away a comfortable 2-0 lead only to score an 85th-minute winning goal courtesy of Denzel Dumfries.
From then on, it was a more straightforward affair for De Boer's side, beating Austria 2-0 in round two before dispatching North Macedonia with ease, triumphing 3-0. Memphis Depay and Georginio Wijnaldum were at the heart of that triumph, with the newly-signed Barcelona attacker breaking the deadlock before setting up his countryman for the first of his two goals.
As a result, the Dutch finished the group stage with a 100 percent record, picking up all the nine points available while scoring eight goals, the most by any nation. However, before dreaming of lifting the prestigious trophy at Wembley in the July 11 final, Depay and Co. must first overcome their round of 16 opponents.
While the Czech Republic finished third in their group, Naši head into the knockout stage on the back of a respectable group-stage campaign. Jaroslav Silhavy's commenced their campaign with a 2-0 triumph over Scotland, with Patrik Schick scoring two goals, one of which is the heavy favorite for the Goal of the Tournament prize. After that was a 1-1 draw with Croatia before losing 1-0 to England in the final round. Can they pull off an upset against the Netherlands? Tune in to find out!
Team news
Netherlands: Luuk de Jong has been ruled out for the remainder of the tournament after picking up knee injury. In his stead, Wout Weghorst or Donyell Malen will likely start, with Memphis Depay set to lead the Dutch attack once again.
Czech Republic: Jan Boril has racked up two bookings and will thus miss out on this tie, meaning Ales Mateju will likely deputize. Naši will look to Patrik Schick for inspiration in attack, with West Ham midfielder Tomas Soucek set to be an additional aerial threat.
Key stats
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This will be the third encounter between these two nations in the European Championship since the formation of the Czech Republic, with each siding winning once (D1).
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This will be the first encounter between these two sides since October 2015.
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Netherlands have lost their last two encounters with Naši.
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The Oranje are looking to win four consecutive European Championship fixtures for the first time since the 2000.
Broadcast listings
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