MUNICH, Germany--After a week of brow beating, hand wringing and introspection, the Netherlands emerged from defeat in their last group game to give a vivid display of their potential on Tuesday in booking a quarter-final place at the European Championship. The one-sided nature of their 3-0 win over Romania in the round of 16 at the Munich Football Arena was sparkling Dutch football at its best – save for multiple misses in front of goal that might have ensured a more emphatic winning margin. Cody Gakpo scored his third goal of the European Championship and substitute Donyell Malen added two more after coming on late in the game. . But it was a marked improvement from the group stage where they staggered into the knockout rounds in third place and spent several days in sessions of self-criticism and clearing the air discussions with one another after losing 3-2 to Austria. Plain speaking is a Dutch trait and even the junior members of the squad are encouraged to voice their opinion. Whether all the frank discourse was the catalyst for the champagne showing is debatable because Romania offered only 10 minutes of high pressing pressure at the start of the game and not much more thereafter. But whatever the quality of the opponents, the confidence boost the Dutch will get from the last-16 win will serve them well for Saturday's quarter-final in Berlin. Noticeable was how they quickened the pace of their passing, how committed they were to winning the second balls and how effectively they drove down the wings or through the centre. Cody Gakpo's performances for Liverpool in the Premier League might have been a mixed bag but he is fast emerging as a real star for the national team. His goals for the Netherlands are proving invaluable. The 25-year-old got three at the last World Cup in Qatar, where the Dutch reached the last eight before losing to eventual winners Argentina on penalties and now has three at this tournament too. His total is 12 goals in 28 internationals. It is on the left side of the attack that Gakpo is most dangerous, particularly his ability to cut in and shoot, and he is beginning to evoke comparisons with Arjen Robben. The 21-year-old Xavi Simons is also fast developing into a vital link player with an aggression belying his small frame. They, and the rest of a sharp-looking Dutch side, will now have a bounce in their step as they look forward to the weekend. There is no need for any more critical contemplation. Slow start The Dutch started slowly at the Munich Football Arena as underdogs Romania -- roared on by their yellow-clad supporters -- controlled the ball for the first quarter of an hour before the Netherlands slowly started to get a grip on the match. They broke the deadlock after 20 minutes when player of the match Gakpo fired low past Florin Nita at the keeper's near post before Malen's late double clinched a quarter-final with Austria or Turkey, who play later on Tuesday, in Berlin on Saturday. "This was the answer we had to our last performance - good game, good goals, we played good football," Gakpo said. "Of course we could do better but a good showing after the last game. A good step in that next direction. We felt we were in control even though they were a dangerous opponent." Gakpo was a menace all night and turned provider for Malen's first goal in the 83rd minute when he kept the ball in play on the touchline and knocked it across the box for an easy tap in. Malen, who is the first Netherlands player to score in a Euro knockout match as a substitute, notched his second in stoppage time when he collected the ball in midfield, dribbled into the penalty area and fired past Nita as the Dutch served notice that they have started to click at the tournament. Romania, who were forced into a first half substitution when Bogdan Racovitan came on in defence for Vasile Mogosafter a collision, created few chances and never looked a serious threat as the Dutch controlled possession and waited to get forward. Romania manager Edward Iordanescu had said his side, who topped Group E with four points, would need a near perfect performance but his players lacked the crispness and counter-attacking threat they displayed earlier in the tournament. "We played well the first 15 to 20 minutes then their first goal came and it destabilised us to some extent," Romania defender Andrei Burca said. "We are disappointed, we wanted a lot from this match." The Netherlands had two thirds of possession and almost five times more chances with 24 attempts in the game to underline their superiority as Virgil van Dijk struck the post with a header and Gakpo had a second effort ruled out for offside.
DUESSELDORF, Germany-- France got the better of Belgium once again, grabbing a late winner in a cagey contest on Monday to take a quarter-final place at the European Championship. But it was a victory without much conviction.
Randal Kolo Muani’s deflected effort keeps the pre-tournament favourites on course, but a major improvement is needed in front of goal if they are to clear the next hurdle. Kylian Mbappe showed several bursts of pace and turns of foot to remind the Belgians of their two previous losses to their neighbour, in the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup and the 2021 Nations League. In one dazzling move on Monday he danced past Yannick Carrasco with such ease that the Belgian was left with a resigned look of bemusement on his face. But Mbappe’s wizardry was all too infrequent and more alarmingly for France, he fluffed a handful of chances in front of goal that he would ordinarily have buried without much effort. It could be he is still struggling with the mask he was wearing to protect his broken nose. Mbappe has made it clear he hates it but has to wear it as a necessary protection. The impact of the injury on his confidence remains evident, even if this was a second game after his comeback against Poland last week. Mbappe is not the only concern. Antoine Greizmann was brought back to play behind the two strikers but could not find the range on his attempts at incisive passes and is also lacking sharpness. These are key players for France and once their post-match celebrations are over, there will much concern among the coaches as they plan ahead for the last eight at the weekend. Initially, the majority of French efforts on the Belgian goal were long-range strikes from Aurelien Tchouameni, only one of which forced a save out of the goalkeeper. AMBITIOUS But ultimately France proved the more ambitious of the two teams and finally forced the breakthrough with five minutes left to play. UEFA decided to award the winner as an own goal against Jan Vertonghen, in a rather ignominious end to the 37-year-old’s international career, which started in 2007. That decision also means France still have not managed to score in open play in their four matches so far at Euro 2024, plus their last warm-up friendly against Canada in the build-up to the tournament. Les Bleus’ tally over the five games is three goals – two own goals and a penalty converted by Mbappe. Not the sort of statistics that inspire confidence.
GELSENKIRCHEN, Germany-- Georgia staged the biggest upset in Euro history with a 2-0 win over Portugal on Wednesday to stride into the knock-out phase of their first major tournament, thanks to an early Khvicha Kvaratskhelia strike and a Georges Mikautadze penalty.
MICHIGAN--Ally Ewing and Jennifer Kupcho carded an eagle on their way to a 6-under 64 to join a three-team tie for first place after one round of the Dow Championship on Thursday in Midland, Mich. The all-Thailand team of Chanettee Wannasaen and Jaravee Boonchant and two top-12 players in the world, Ruoning Yin of China and Atthaya Thitikul of Thailand, joined Ewing and Kupcho at 64 after their first round at Midland Country Club. The only official team event on the LPGA schedule, the Dow Championship had players compete in foursomes (alternate shot) on Thursday and will do so again Saturday. The field will play four-ball (best ball) in the second and final rounds. Ewing and Kupcho started their day on the back nine and birdied the 11th and 12th holes before a run of pars. After a birdie at No. 18 and a bogey at the first, they went birdie-eagle at the next two holes for a jolt. "We're both pretty consistent," Ewing said. "Just kind of trusting each other and knowing our games and able to roll in some putts, and certainly a 3 on a par-5 is always going to help, with only two out here." Kupcho, a onetime major champion, said she sees every hole at Midland as a birdie hole. She's playing with Ewing, who is on the biggest heater of her career with three straight top-five finishes, including at two majors. "I asked her about 20 times," Kupcho said of teaming up with Ewing, "and then she finally said yes." "We have played (the) Solheim (Cup). We've never played together, so it's been fun kind of knowing that our games are very similar to put them up together," Ewing said. Boonchant and Wannasaen had the only bogey-free card among the trio at the top. "We hit many fairways, many greens, give ourselves ... a lot of opportunity to make birdies," Boonchant said. "With (Wannasaen's) putting, she's like rolling everything. I think most of our birdies come from her." Yin and Thitikul also started on the back nine and rang up six birdies and a bogey for a 5-under 30. They added one final birdie at the par-3 seventh hole to get to 6 under. "(Thitikul's) putter is just so hot. You don't want to touch that. It's getting hot," Yin joked. "My job was just to hit a shot, just make sure the ball is on the green, and she'll make everything. It's pretty fun." Two teams are one off the pace at 5-under 65: Americans Jennifer Chang and Annie Park, and Taiwan's Ssu-Chia Cheng and Wei-Ling Hsu. Lexi Thompson is playing with Brooke M. Henderson of Canada, and the pair also eagled the par-5 third Thursday en route to a bogey-free, 4-under 66. They're tied for sixth with Englishwomen Charley Hull and Georgia Hall, as well as Yealimi Noh and South Korea's A Lim Kim.
DORTMUND, Germany- - As France struggled again to turn chances into goals at Euro 2024 in a 1-1 draw with Poland on Tuesday, a frustrated Kylian Mbappe ran over for an exchange with Didier Deschamps, pointing animatedly to different corners of the pitch. The first-half debate between captain and coach summed up the challenge for France who have found the back of the net only twice in three games at the tournament: once from an own goal against Austria and a penalty scored by Mbappe against Poland. The draw - which means France finished second in Group D, the first time in Deschamps' 12 years in charge that they have not topped a group stage pool - will do little to settle the unease among fans at their team's lack of goals. As in previous matches in Germany, France looked dangerous with wingers Ousmane Dembele and Bradley Barcola - making his first start in the national team as Deschamps reworked his attack - offering lots of threat. Mbappe, back from sitting out the 0-0 draw with the Netherlands, seemed uninhibited by the mask he wore to protect the broken nose that he suffered in the 1-0 opening win over Austria, powering his way past defenders with ease. The Real Madrid-bound striker showed signs of working well with Barcola before breaking the deadlock to score his 48th goal in 81 appearances for France, but his first at a European Championship, from the penalty spot in the 56th minute. In a sign of how France's dominance, their 55 touches in their opponents' penalty box were more than any team in a match so far in Germany, according to Opta. Deschamps turned to experienced forwards Antoine Griezmann, who he had dropped to the bench, and Olivier Giroud in an attempt to put the match beyond doubt. But it was Poland's veteran captain Robert Lewandowski who scored the game's only other goal, also scoring from the spot with a re-taken penalty. Deschamps was left to express his frustration once again at France's lack of ruthlessness. "We have to accept it, even if we did what we did by creating the chances," he said. "At least we’re qualified and we know when we’ll play. A new competition will start. We’re not going to live with regrets. We could have been more efficient, we were not able to double our advantage." France now face the runners-up in Group F, a spot currently occupied by Turkey and which they can secure with a draw against Czech Republic on Wednesday. Turkey have conceded four goals in their two Euro 2024 matches so far, offering hope for Deschamps and his misfiring team that they can rediscover their scoring touch.
