Koeman saw fighting Oranje, but ‘Croatia is third in the world for a reason’

Ronald Koeman was not surprised by the class of Croatia, who were too strong for the Dutch national team 4-2 in the Nations League semifinals. “They are not the number three in the world for nothing,” the Oranje coach said, referring to the Croatians’ third-place finish at the last World Cup.

“Tonight they showed it again. We struggled with that. We did everything we could, but were sloppy at times. They were ball steady, that was the difference over the whole match,” said Koeman, who had particularly enjoyed 37-year-old midfielder Luka Modric.

Especially in the second half, the Croatian superiority was evident, Koeman felt. “We didn’t come out of the dressing room well after halftime. The first half was still more than fine, but after that it was less. Croatia’s midfield took control.”

As the closing stages of the second half approached and the Netherlands were facing a 2-1 deficit, the Oranje staff pulled out a tried-and-true trick. The tactics for the final minutes were written on a bill, which was delivered to Frenkie de Jong.

In 2018, the Netherlands – also led by Koeman – made the important equalizer in an away game with Germany after passing a similar bill around. This time the final offensive led to Noa Lang’s 2-2, after which it came to an extension.

Koeman was proud of his team’s resilience, but could not help but conclude that the stretch was out after ninety intense minutes. “We fought and tried at the end to change as attacking as possible. But in the extension, Croatia was better.”

“I’m satisfied with the energy we put into it. The result is negative and that prevails, but you must not close your eyes to the good things that were there,” said Koeman, who could not yet say whether he will rest players Sunday in the duel for third/fourth place.

Compliments for goal scorer Lang Koeman still had. “In March I spoke with Noa. Then I told him why he wasn’t there yet. There were some things that I thought did not suit a footballer. Too many cards, a piece of behavior on the pitch.”

“I’ve talked to him about it again now. Always with the Dutch team he has behaved perfectly and he has had a good training week now. He can play soccer and scored a great goal. There is competition at that position, but he makes a good impression.”