Netherlands coach Frank de Boer on the ‘easy’ road to the semi-finals and Patrik Schick’s goal

He is criticized for many things. For example, Dutch fans condemn him for opting for a three-stopper system instead of the classic 4-3-3 formation for the Tulips. But Frank de Boer’s tactics are working so far, and he has paved his way to the semi-finals.

At the beginning, the Dutch coach praised the work of our national team in recent weeks. He mentioned the unfortunate draw with Belgium, when Šilhavy’s team was within reach of a win, and finally the draw with Croatia.

“The Czech Republic is a cohesive team. They know what they want to play. What they do best, in my opinion, is putting the opponent under pressure. They know how to press. They showed that against Belgium and against their group opponents. They managed to draw 1-1 with Croatia, the last World Cup finalist.”

Frank de Boer is well aware that the statistics of the last few years also play in favour of the Czechs, who won their last two matches against the Dutch. And they have lost only two of the last seven.

“The Czechs can play on the ground, they have players who can get high up the pitch. They fight for every ball. We have had very difficult games against them in history, so we have a tough opponent. We have to give 100 percent tomorrow to beat them.”

The often criticised Tulips coach also praised Patrik Schick for his performance. Of course, he didn’t miss his spectacular goal into Scotland’s net from the middle of the field.

“That was a fantastic goal, one of the most beautiful in the whole tournament. I don’t think anyone can beat that goal. A world class goal from a great striker.”

With all due respect to their opponents, the Dutch have a very easy path to the semi-finals at least. If they qualify, they will face Denmark, the next weakest team on paper.

“We are in this part of the spider, we know the way to the final. Any other matches would be advantageous for us, but we are only focusing on the match against the Czech Republic. Of course, to advance to the semi-finals or the final would be great. But we have six or seven other teams that are thinking the same,” de Boer concluded the pre-match interview.

Source: KNVB