Three-time World Cup runners-up, the Netherlands, secured their place at the 2026 finals with an effortless 4-0 home victory over Lithuania on Monday, finishing at the top of Group G.
The margin of victory
could have been even greater due to the Dutch dominance, but the result ensured they ended the campaign three points ahead of second-placed Poland.
How Netherlands Beat Lithuania?
Tijjani Reijnders put the Netherlands 1-0 ahead at halftime before the hosts scored three rapid goals in the second half from Cody Gakpo, Xavi Simons, and Donyell Malen.
The unbeaten Netherlands finished with 20 points, while Poland had 17 after narrowly winning 3-2 away to Malta.
Reijnders opened the scoring in the 16th minute by sharply finishing off a pass from Frenkie de Jong.
He had been left out of the starting lineup for the 1-1 draw against Poland in Warsaw on Friday, with Justin Kluivert preferred in the attacking midfield role.
However, Kluivert’s injury for Monday’s match gave Reijnders the opportunity to showcase his quality.
He almost scored a second goal at the half-hour mark, bursting through the middle and hitting the post with a curling right-foot shot.
Three goals in four minutes started fortuitously in the 58th minute when Gakpo converted a penalty awarded after a VAR check revealed Artemijus Tutyskinas touched the ball with his fingertip during an aerial duel with Matthijs de Ligt.
Simons added the third goal on the hour mark, dribbling past two defenders before powerfully striking past goalkeeper Edvinas Gertmonas.
Two minutes later, Malen broke away from the halfway line on a counter-attack, showing remarkable speed to outsprint the chasing defenders and score with his left foot.
“I think there were some good things in our performance,” said playmaker De Jong. “Maybe we faded a bit, but the period after halftime was great for the crowd. Of course, you want to score as much as possible, and 4-0 is ultimately fine.
“Now the real work begins. We’re going to improve as much as possible and arrive at the World Cup in the best possible shape,” said the midfielder.
Next year’s finals in Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. will mark the 12th time the Dutch have participated in the World Cup. They were runners-up in the 1974, 1978, and 2010 tournaments.
(With inputs from Agencies)
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