The Netherlands have booked a spot in the semi-finals of Euro 2024 and will now meet England for a place in the final.
Ronald Koeman’s side weren’t exactly stellar in the group stage of Euro 2024 but are now potentially just 90 minutes away from the final.
Koeman watched his team fall 1-0 behind to Turkiye in Saturday’s quarter-final clash before pulling off a second-half fightback.
The Netherlands ended up wining 2-1 and will now face off against England in the semi-finals, a game which truly could go either way.
England’s performances haven’t been anywhere near the level expected and the Netherlands were especially impressive against Romania in the last 16.
Gareth Southgate and co will need to up their game to get past the Netherlands – especially with Cody Gakpo in such fine form.
Micky van de Ven hails Liverpool’s Cody Gakpo
Liverpool ace Gakpo seems to come alive in major tournaments.
The Reds forward dazzled at the 2022 World Cup, earning himself a move to Anfield after causing major problems in Qatar.
Liverpool fans have seen Gakpo blow hot and cold in the Premier League and are still waiting for him to really become a consistent threat in English football.
Those Reds supporters may be a little confused upon seeing Gakpo in action this summer.
The 25-year-old has hit three goals in five games at Euro 2024 and almost had a fourth against Turkiye, but the winning goal went down as an own goal.
Daniel Sturridge has already suggested that Gakpo looks like a ‘different player’ for the Netherlands as Gakpo prepares for a second full season at Liverpool.
Gakpo has been superb on the left flank for the Netherlands and England will need to watch him very closely.
Tottenham Hotspur defender and Netherlands teammate Micky van de Ven has now praised Gakpo whilst speaking to Algemeen Dagblad.
Van de Ven feels that Gakpo is ‘very difficult to stop’, believing that he is ‘always a threat’ in the final third thanks to his real quality on the ball.
“Cody is such a good player in terms of quality. One on one it is very difficult to stop that man. He is always a threat. He is also scoring his goals now, in the Premier League too,” said Van de Ven.
Gakpo needs to kick on
Gakpo has been with Liverpool for around 18 months now and the results have been a little mixed.
15 goals and eight assists in 56 Premier League games for Liverpool isn’t a terrible record, but the Reds needs that to improve.
Perhaps Euro 2024 will show that Gakpo needs to be played regularly as a left winger rather than as a striker.
That is something for new boss Arne Slot to think about, especially having seen plenty of Gakpo in that kind of role at PSV Eindhoven.
Slot came up against Gakpo and PSV during his time as Feyenoord boss.
Gakpo registered two goals against Slot’s Feyenoord in 2022 before bagging a goal and three assists in a 4-3 PSV win just months later.
Slot has certainly seen Gakpo at this best and his displays this summer may tempt the new Liverpool boss into featuring Gakpo prominently moving forward.
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