Netherlands 4-0 Hungary: Hosts cruise into Nations League quarter-finals

The Netherlands secured a place in the quarter-finals of the Nations League with a comfortable 4-0 win over Hungary on Saturday.

Two first-half penalties had put the hosts in control before Denzel Dumfries and Teun Koopmeiners secured second place in Group A3 at the Johan Cruijff ArenA.

A medical emergency on the Hungarian bench saw the match abandoned after eight minutes, but play resumed with a Dutch penalty after a Tamas Nikitscher handball, and Wout Weghorst converted confidently.

Cody Gakpo then doubled the lead from the spot in first-half stoppage time when Zsolt Nagy tripped Donyell Malen in the penalty area and Denes Dibusz was again sent the wrong way.

Weghorst hit a delightful long-range curler against the crossbar shortly after the restart, but Dumfries would take third in the 64th minute with a drilled finish across goal into the far bottom corner.

Koopmeiners completed the scoring late, meeting Dumfries' inch-perfect cross to fire a header past Dibusz and at the far post, only to be denied by the post moments later.

Guaranteed a place in the quarter-finals of the #NationsLeague! #NothingLikeOranje #NEDHUN pic.twitter.com/nF6bqwCUKF

— OnsOranje (@OnsOranje) November 16, 2024

Data Debrief: Dutch march on

The Netherlands knew they had to avoid defeat to reach the last eight in the Nations League, but Ronald Koeman's team would not settle.

They were on the attack from the very start, registering 22 shots and creating 2.92 expected goals.

Dumfries was central to both goals after the break and he became the second player in history to score each of his first nine international goals for the Netherlands in the second half, after Pierre van Hooijdonk (also nine).