Oranje announces final selection for World Cup qualifiers
Tyrell Malacia and Devyne Rensch were included in the final selection of the Dutch national team for the first time. National coach Louis van Gaal invited the defenders from Feyenoord and Ajax to the upcoming matches with Norway, Montenegro and Turkey in the World Cup qualifiers.
Malacia and Rensch were also already in a preliminary selection of 25 players. Steven Bergwijn and Denzel Dumfries were included in Van Gaal's chosen team. They were not in the preliminary roster. They take the place of Remko Pasveer and Donny van de Beek, who were dropped.
From the European Championship selection of previous national coach Frank de Boer, Patrick van Aanholt, Joël Veltman, Owen Wijndal, Luuk de Jong and Quincy Promes are missing.
Goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen, who was in the final selection but ultimately did not make it to the European Championship, is also not int he group.
The Netherlands will play an away game against Norway in the World Cup qualification on Wednesday, 1 September, followed by home matches against Montenegro (Saturday, 4 September in Eindhoven) and Turkey (Tuesday, 7 September in Amsterdam)
Oranje is second in group G, with 1 point less than Turkey and as many points as Norway and Montenegro. Only the winners of the groups qualify for the World Cup. The numbers 2 get a second chance in the play-offs.
The World Cup will be held in Qatar from 21 November to 18 December 2022.
Selection Dutch national team: Goal: Justin Bijlow (Feyenoord), Joël Drommel (PSV), Tim Krul (Norwich City).
Defense: Nathan Aké (Manchester City), Daley Blind (Ajax), Denzel Dumfries (Internaniozale), Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool), Matthijs de Ligt (Juventus), Tyrell Malacia (Feyenoord), Devyne Rensch (Ajax), Jurriën Timber (Ajax), and Stefan de Vrij (Internazionale).
Midfield: Ryan Gravenberch (Ajax), Frenkie de Jong (Barcelona), Davy Klaassen (Ajax), Teun Koopmeiners (AZ), Marten de Roon (Atalanta Bergamo), Guus Til (Feyenoord), and Georginio Wijnaldum (Paris Saint-Germain).
Attack: Steven Berghuis (Ajax), Steven Bergwijn (Tottenham Hotspur), Memphis Depay (Barcelona), Cody Gakpo (PSV), Donyell Malen (Borussia Dortmund), and Wout Weghorst (VfL Wolfsburg)
Reporting by ANP