EURO 2020: Belgium, Netherlands book their spot in last 16

BERLIN, June 17: The Netherlands and Belgium reached the Euro 2020 last 16 as both the teams registered victories in their second matches in the group stage. 

The Dutch team made it to the last 16 from Group C with one game to spare after beating uninspired Austria 2-0 on the goals from Memphis Depay and Denzel Dumfries at the Johan Cruyff Arena in Amsterdam on Thursday.

The Dutch side didn't need long to kick off things on home soil as Austria defender David Alaba fouled Dumfries inside the box allowing Depay to make it 1-0 on scoreboards following a penalty.

Austria had their hands full keeping the Netherlands at distance. Depay missed the target though from a tight angle but rattled the outside of the netting to send a warning in the 24th minute.

Four minutes later, Franco Foda's men showed a vital sign with a quick combination through the lines but for all that Christoph Baumgartner's shot on target got blocked by Matthijs de Ligt.

The hosts created a few more opportunities in the closing stages of the first half but failed to extend the lead as neither Depay nor Georginio Wijnaldum was able to make it two despite promising chances.

Austria came out strong after the interval while the Dutch defended deep and cleared their lines with long balls out of their territory.

However, Austria wasn't able to find a gap in the host's rock-solid defense and got punished in the 67th minute when Doynell Malen, who was fielded three minutes earlier, raced down the left wing before crossing the ball to the far post where Dumfries poked home into the empty goal.

Austria tried to hit back but the Netherlands' defense stood firm to keep a clean sheet.

"We were well-organized at the time but weren't clinical enough in the final third," said Austria head coach Franco Foda.

"It was a match in which we didn't create too much but we were in control. I didn't get the feeling that Austria had many chances. It wasn't easy, but you don't expect that at a tournament like this," said Dutch defender Matthijs de Ligt.

With the second win in as many games, the Netherlands (6 points) secured a first-place finish in Group C. Ukraine (3 points) sat in second followed by Austria (3 points) and winless North Macedonia (0 points).

De Bruyne the hero as Belgium come back behind to beat Denmark 

Kevin de Bruyne was the hero for Belgium as he inspired a second-half fightback to ruin Denmark's attempts to dedicate a win to Christian Eriksen.

De Bruyne helped set up Belgium's equalizing goal and scored the winner after Denmark had taken a second minute lead on an emotional evening in Copenhagen.

From the moment the referee blew the whistle for the game to kick off it was obvious the Danish players wanted to dedicate a win to Eriksen, who will need a pacemaker installed after collapsing in Denmark's opening Euro 2020 game against Finland.

The Danes tore into the Belgians from the start, taking just 90 seconds to open the scoring.

The high pressure from the Danes saw Jason Denayer misplace his pass out of defense and Youssef Poulsen put Denmark ahead with a shot into the far corner.

Denmark were winning every challenge and carved out two more chances in the next five minutes, with Joakim Maehle bringing a smart save from Thibaut Courtois before Daniel Wass could have done better with a far-post header.

The game was interrupted in the 10th minute with a minute of applause from fans, both sets of players and even the officials for Eriksen, who is currently recovering in hospital.

The interruption to the play didn't mean a letup for the Belgians who were unable to get out of their half for nearly all of the first 45 minutes as the Danes caused them constant problems with their pace, but failed to score a vital second goal.

Bruyne came on for Belgium at the start of the second half for his first appearance since suffering a face injury in the Champions League final and his return led to an immediate improvement from his side.

Thorgan Hazard equalized in the 52nd minute with a simple finish after a fantastic move which saw Romalu Lukaku surge forward before passing to De Bruyne, who squared the ball for Hazard to score.

Denmark were tiring and the game had totally changed, and as if to underline his influence, De Bruyne put Belgium ahead with a drilled left-foot shot from around 25 meters after a move involving Lukaku and Eden Hazard, who had also come on as a substitute.

Martin Brathwaite saw a shot saved by Courtois, was inches away from getting a vital touch to a cross from the left and then flicked a header onto the top of the bar as Denmark looked to save a draw, but even with Kasper Schmeichel going forward for an injury time corner the equalizer wouldn't come.

Denmark now need to beat Russia in their last game and hope results elsewhere go their way to have a chance of making the last 16. 

(Xinhua)