Prediction: Netherlands vs Denmark

Verdict: Home win

Best odds: 10/11

Bookmaker: Unibet

Netherlands and Denmark are set to size each other up in a friendly match on Saturday evening at the Amsterdam ArenA. Both teams have secured a spot in Qatar later this year, so this is obviously an opportunity for the two coaches to assess their options both in terms of selection and choice of system.

Netherlands

Netherlands finished top of Group G in the UEFA section of the qualifications, two points ahead of Turkey, five ahead of Norway, with the likes of Montenegro, Latvia and Gibraltar also involved in the process. Some may have expected Norway, with players like Erling Haaland and Martin Odegaard in their ranks, to end up in a better place, but no-one can deny that Netherlands were always primed to finish first.

Recent form rarely plays any part in friendly encounters, but pure for the sake argument, the Dutch beat Montenegro at home by 4-0, Turkey at home by 6-1, Latvia away 0-1, Gibraltar at home 6-0, drew 2-2 away to Montenegro, and eventually beat Norway 2-0 at home to seal the top spot.

Coach Louis van Gaal, who recently fired some severe criticism at FIFA for controversially selecting Qatar as the place to have the World Cup, has reportedly been working on a new system which he intends to test against the Danes. The shape in question is believed to be 3-4-1-2. Van Gaal missed a few training session after testing positive to COVID-19, but he’s expected to take his place in the dugout on Saturday.

Three days after this match, Netherlands will face Germany, also in Amsterdam.

Team News

Centre-back Jurrien Timber of Ajax, PSV Eindhoven winger Cody Gakpo and right-back Jordan Teze have all pulled out of the squad through injuries, while Inter Milan centre-back Stefan de Vrij and Feyenoord goalkeeper Justin Bijlow haven’t been called up.

Cody Gakpo, Jurrien Timber and Jordan Teze have left the Netherlands training camp with injuries.

No replacements will be called up.

— Dutch Football 🇳🇱 (@FootballOranje_) March 25, 2022

Van Gaal has dropped a hint that SC Freiburg’s Mark Flekken could start between the posts, while Manchester City’s Nathan Ake and Ajax’s Daley Blind are likely to take the places either side of the captain, Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk, in the back line.

Denmark

As for the Danes, the main story at the moment is the fact that Christian Eriksen has been called up again. The former Tottenham Hotspur and Inter Milan midfielder has resurrected his career against all odds after the cardiac arrest he suffered at the Euros last year, and he is now back in the Premier League, playing for Brentford on a short-term contract.

Christian Eriksen linking up with the Denmark team again 🏡 pic.twitter.com/rS3iVRO59v

— B/R Football (@brfootball) March 24, 2022

Denmark finished the qualifications campaign top of Group F, five points ahead of Scotland after winning nine of the 10 matches played. An impressive campaign indeed from the Euro 2020 semifinalists. The group also involved Israel, Austria, Faroe Islands and Moldova. The last six matches they played were triumphs 0-1 away to Faroe Islands, 5-0 at home over Israel, 0-4 away to Moldova, 1-0 at home over Austria, 3-1 at home over Faroe Islands, and the only defeat of the campaign, 2-0 away to Scotland.

John Souttar and Che Adams were the players to make sure the Danes lost one match, but the top spot in the group had already been secured by then for Kasper Hjulmand and his men.

Team News

Denmark will be without AC Milan’s Simon Kjaer and Chelsea’s Andreas Christensen for this match, a serious blow for their back line. In their absence, it’s likely to be comprised of Joachim Andersen of Crystal Palace, Jannik Vestergaard of Leicester City, and Galatasaray’s Victor Nelson, who will all be forming the last wall ahead of Leicester’s Kasper Schmeichel in goal.

Conclusion

There’s never a lot to go on when trying to assess what could happen in a friendly match, but there’s no escaping the fact that the home team are the favourites to emerge victorious.

Verdict: Home win

Best odds: 10/11

Bookmaker: Unibet