Netherlands are attempting to jumpstart their campaign as they host Greece in Group B of the European Championship qualifiers. The Dutch have been unconvincing lately, particularly at the back and with the Greeks also struggling on their travels, goals can be expected here.
It has not been a smooth start to the qualifiers for Netherlands, who have one win and one defeat from their two Group B matches. They began with a 4-0 hammering in France before picking up a 3-0 home win over Gibraltar in their previous fixture.
The win over Gibraltar is the only victory for Netherlands in the last five matches across all competitions. Ronald Koeman’s men head into Thursday’s clash off the back of a 3-2 defeat to Italy in a UEFA Nations League fixture back in June.
The major problem for Netherlands appears to be an inability to maintain their discipline at the back. The win over Gibraltar is their only clean sheet in the last five matches, having conceded 13 goals in that run.
Greece have fared much better in the qualifiers and appear to be the only ones giving France a chase. They are three points behind the Group B leaders after claiming two wins and suffering one defeat in their opening three matches.
The Greeks started qualifiers well enough as they triumphed 3-0 in Gibraltar before picking up a 2-1 win over Republic of Ireland. However, Gus Poyet’s men fell last time out as they were beaten 1-0 by France.
The defeat in France highlights a poor record for Greece on their recent travels. The win over Gibraltar is their only victory and clean sheet in their last five away matches having conceded six goals in that run.
How the bookies view it
Despite their poor showings in recent times, Netherlands still have the upper hand among the bookies at 4/9 with Unibet. A victory for Greece is valued at 7/1 by Coral while 10bet is offering odds of 7/2 for a draw.
Head to head
Netherlands have only lost once to Greece, claiming seven wins and a draw from nine previous matches. However, that defeat came in their most recent meeting as the Greeks picked up a 2-1 win in a friendly in 2016.
Players to watch
Netherlands may be struggling defensively but they have plenty of quality in attack, even in the absence of Memphis Depay and Steven Bergwijn. Having scored three goals in four matches for Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund this season, Donyell Malen could be worth keeping an eye on at 13/5 with William Hill.
Anastasios Bakasetas has proved to be a major goal threat from midfield for Greece, scoring in two of the three qualifying matches so far. He will be the one to watch on Thursday and is priced at 4/1 by BetVictor to get on the score sheet.
Anything else catch the eye?
Netherlands have seen over 3.5 goals in five of their last six matches and a repeat is priced at 11/5 with Paddy Power. Over 2.5 gas can also be considered at 17/20 with bet365 while 888Sport is offering evens on both teams to score.
There have been more goals after the break in Netherlands’ last three matches and Thursday’s clash could be set to follow a similar pattern at 11/10 with bet365.
This Euro 2024 match between Netherlands and Greece will be played on Sep 7, 2023 and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best Netherlands vs Greece prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
