After their disappointment in France on Friday, Netherlands will be targeting a swift response as they host Gibraltar in their second Group B fixture on Monday.
Netherlands were disappointing in their opening fixture as they suffered a 4-0 defeat to France. It was a lesson in ruthlessness from the French as the Dutch had several scoring opportunities but were wasteful in front of goal.
While it was a disappointing night for Netherlands, they may have a valid reason for their poor showing. A virus swept through the camp on the eve of Friday’s clash with the likes of Matthijs De Ligt, Sven Botman and Cody Gakpo among the players affected.
Despite their problems, Netherlands still head into Monday’s clash with plenty of confidence having claimed seven wins and two draws in their last nine home matches. Among the results in that run is a 6-0 victory over Gibraltar during the 2022 World Cup qualifiers.
Qualifying for the European Championship from this group appears virtually impossible for Gibraltar, whose main target will be to avoid going through the campaign without claiming a single point. Julio Cesar Ribas’ men have already made the worst start possible, suffering a 3-0 defeat to Greece in their opening fixture.
That result continues an unfortunate record for Gibraltar, who have never claimed a win in European qualifiers. They are now on a run of 18 straight defeats in these qualifiers, stretching all the way back to 2014.
Travelling also appears to be a problem for Gibraltar, who have not won away from home since a 1-0 victory over Liechtenstein in 2020. Some of their heaviest defeats have come in that run, including a 5-1 loss in Bulgaria last September.
How the bookies view it
Netherlands have been installed as overwhelming favourites among the bookies with a win priced at 1/50 by Paddy Power. An unlikely win for Gibraltar is valued at 300/1 by Paddy Power while SBK is offering odds of 54/1 for a draw.
Head to head
Netherlands have never lost to Gibraltar and did the double during the 2022 World Cup qualifiers. They claimed a 7-0 victory in the first meeting before running out 6-0 winners in the reverse fixture.
Players to watch
Memphis Depay often turns up for Netherlands and will be the one to watch on Monday. Having grabbed a brace in each of the previous two meetings with Gibraltar, the striker could be backed to score two or more goals at 41/50 with Unibet.
At the other end of the pitch, Netherlands will be targeting a shutout having not conceded in the two previous meetings with Gibraltar. Captain Virgil Van Dijk should once again feature at the heart of the defence and can lead the Dutch to a clan sheet at 1/5 with 10bet.
Anything else catch the eye?
Netherlands were three goals up at the break in the previous meeting with Gibraltar and could be tipped in the -2 first half handicap market at 5/6 with 10bet. They also scored a penalty in that fixture and a repeat could be on the cards at 4/5 with bet365.
The Dutch opened the scoring in the ninth minute in the previous fixture with Gibraltar and can be backed to grab a goal before 10 minutes on Monday at 6/5 with 10bet.
This Euro 2024 match between Netherlands and Gibraltar will be played on Mar 27, 2023 and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best Netherlands vs Gibraltar prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
