Van Dijk–Koopmeiners Partnership Criticised Despite Netherlands Victory

The Netherlands secured a 2-1 victory over Serbia in Matchday 4 of Group B in the UEFA Nations League on Monday, but the centre-back partnership of Virgil van Dijk and Teun Koopmeiners has come under criticism despite the result.

Koopmeiners and Joshua Zirkzee scored for the Netherlands, while Mihajlo Cvetkovic pulled one back for Serbia.

Despite the victory, Dutch ESPN analyst Hans Kraay Jr questioned whether the pairing of Van Dijk and Koopmeiners is strong enough to compete at the highest international level.

Kraay believes Van Dijk could be better suited alongside Micky van de Ven, with Jorrel Hato occupying the left side of the defence.

“In possession, the two could work well together. But they would not be good enough to play at a more serious level,” Kraay said.

“Teun is a midfielder and at Juventus he sometimes moves to the right, the left and even into the No. 10 position. He is very important when it comes to scoring goals.”

Serbia also deployed Dusan Tadic in a withdrawn striker role during the match, a position that is not typically associated with the veteran forward. Tadic was able to cause problems for the Dutch defence, while Kraay felt the Van Dijk–Koopmeiners combination struggled to deal with the threat.

The analyst suggested that playing Koopmeiners in a deeper defensive role could indicate that Netherlands head coach Xavi Hernandez is looking for additional options in midfield.

“I see Van Dijk normally playing on the right side of the defence, and he is comfortable there. Meanwhile, Van de Ven would be a good option at left centre-back. He can be the ‘jet fighter’ alongside Van Dijk,” Kraay added.

“Van Dijk is 35 years old and he can no longer run as fast as he used to.”

The Netherlands currently sit top of Group B with eight points from two wins and two draws.

They will return to Nations League action in November, when they are scheduled to face Greece and Germany in their remain