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The Netherlands began their 2022 FIFA World Cup campaign with a 2-0 win over Group A opponents Senegal at the Al Thumama Stadium on Monday. Late goals from Cody Gakpo and Davy Klaassen saw the Dutch side take all three points from their opening match in Qatar.
Louis van Gaal gave a start to uncapped goalkeeper Andries Noppert, who, at 6ft 8in, is the tallest player at this World Cup. Senegal, who are without their injured talisman Sadio Made, had nine players from their Africa Cup of Nations-winning squad in their starting line-up.
The African side started strong, with Ismaila Sarr pouncing on Matthijs De Ligt's mistake in the first minute and finding Boulaye Dia, whose shot was blocked for a corner by Frenkie De Jong.
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The Netherlands almost went ahead in the 19th minute when Steven Berghuis started a counter-attack and teed up Frenkie de Jong, who, with just the keeper to beat, took too many touches, giving Senegal time to recover and clear the ball.
The AFCON champions' best chance came in the second half when Dia latched onto a through ball and tried to get his shot to sneak in at the near post but Noppert was quick to react and parry it wide.
Both teams had their share of chances but failed to find the back of the net. The match looked like it was heading toward a stalemate when De Jong's cross from deep found the run of Gakpo, who got to the ball ahead of Edouard Mendy and headed it into an empty net.
They added another in the closing minutes when a long ball found Memphis Depay, whose shot was parried by Mendy before Klaassen converted the rebound and made it 2-0.
On that note, here are five hits and flops from a hard-fought game between Netherlands and Senegal in Qatar:
#5. Hit - Frenkie de Jong | Netherands
Frenkie de Jong ran the show for the Netherlands, who would have had a much easier time had he converted his glorious chance in the first half.
The 25-year-old put in an all-action performance as he bossed the midfield, worked hard defensively, and kept his side in possession. It was the Barcelona midfielder's inch-perfect cross that finally broke the deadlock and undid Senegal's brave defensive performance.
#4. Hit - Kalidou Koulibaly | Senegal
The Senegal skipper led from the front against the Netherlands, organizing his backline and making sure the Dutch runners couldn't find space behind the defensive line.
For 85 minutes, Kalidou Koulibaly and his backline stood strong, only to be undone by Edouard Mendy's lack of communication with his teammates. The scoreline aside, this match should give Aliou Cissé confidence in his team's defence.
#3. Hit - Ismaila Sarr | Senegal
Sadio Mane's injury was a huge blow for Senegal, whose chances of making it to the knockout stages went down several notches following his withdrawal. While he isn't at Mane's level yet, Ismaila Sarr showed against the Netherlands that Mane's absence wouldn't be as big a blow as pundits have felt.
The winger was given free rein and showed his ability in drawing defenders with his close control before finding teammates in pockets of space.
Matthijs De Ligt, specifically, had a horrid time defending against him. If he gets more support from his fellow attackers, Senegal can overcome Mane's loss and cause an upset or two in the latter stages of the competition if they make it past the group stage.
#2. Flop - Edouard Mendy | Senegal
Edouard Mendy rose to fame pretty quickly after moving from Rennes to Chelsea. He was deservedly named the best goalkeeper in the Champions League after guiding his team to the trophy in 2021.
Those highs, however, seem to be a thing of the past. Bad form and injury saw him lose his spot at the club level to Kepa Arrizabalaga. If Mendy was hoping to regain his confidence in Qatar and return to Chelsea to fight for his spot between the sticks, he did himself no favors against Senegal.
The lack of communication between him and his defense saw him concede a simple opening goal before he made a mistake in parrying Depay's shot into Klaassen's path for Netherlands' second.
#1. Hit - Cody Gakpo | Netherlands
Cody Gakpo has been used to single-handedly leading his team to victories at the club level. Regular Eredivisie viewers would not have been surprised by the PSV winger breaking the deadlock when the match looked to be heading toward a draw.
The goal against Senegal means he has now scored or assisted 33 goals in all competitions this season — and we are not even halfway through the campaign. In the calendar year, he now has 27 goals and 23 assists.
Gakpo is on course to becoming the next big export from the Dutch league this coming summer.
