Cody Gakpo and Brian Brobbey scored twice as the Netherlands beat Sweden 5-1 in a World Cup caution on Saturday in Houston.
The big win in front of almost 69,000 spectators put the delighted Dutch at the top of the knockout rounds and gave them momentum after being tied by Japan.
Ronald Koeman’s team leads Group F with four points from two games, ahead of Sweden with three, Japan (one) and Tunisia (none).
Despite the sobering defeat, the Swedes had many opportunities, but they were derailed by good goalkeeping and a wasteful finish.
They still have a good chance of progressing to the last 16, but face a test in the form of Japan in their final group match.
“We attacked, we had some chances, but obviously defensively you can’t give up that many and expect to win, but we will learn a lot from the game,” Swedish coach Graham Potter said. bbc television.
“Sometimes you have to have these experiences, I didn’t think it was that kind of game, but that’s the result, we have to accept it and learn from it.”
Sunderland striker Brobbey made his first start in the tournament and repaid Koeman with predatory goals at five and 17 minutes.
Before that, the 24-year-old had only scored one goal for his country.
In a match full of Premier League talent, Liverpool’s Gakpo, who set up Brobbey for the first goal, scored twice early in the second half.
Substitute Anthony Elanga scored for Sweden just before the hour with a classy finish.
Substitute Crysencio Summerville, who was replaced in the starting lineup by Brobbey, had the last word for the Dutch five-star.
“If you look deeper at the goals we scored, it will cause fear among rivals,” Koeman said.
“Because of the way those goals were produced, in transition with a lot of pace and a lot of quality, we can be incredibly dangerous.”
Take off for the Dutch
Two crew members from the historic Artemis II lunar mission were among the VIP guests, a nod to Houston’s place as the home of spaceflight.
The Dutch, twice drawn in a lively 2-2 draw with Japan to begin their title fight, got off to a brighter start in front of their orange-clad fans and King Willem-Alexander.
Brobbey, who came on for Summerville despite the winger scoring against Japan, started and finished the first goal.
It was done in the Premier League, with the participation of goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen, midfielder Tijjani Reijnders and Gakpo.
Brobbey exchanged passes with Gakpo, before the Anfield attacker crossed low from the left for his team-mate to stab in from close range.
At the other end, the much-vaunted attack of Liverpool’s Alexander Isak and Arsenal’s Viktor Gyokeres were fueled by Sweden’s scraps.
Twelve minutes after his first goal, Brobbey made it 2-0 when Denzel Dumfries’ deflected cross from the right fell perfectly into his path and past Kristoffer Nordfeldt.
Sweden, who thrashed Tunisia 5-1 in their opening match, then created several chances for Gyokeres and Yasin Ayari to reduce the deficit, but they failed to find a way past Verbruggen before the break.
World Cup Warning
Koeman sent on Summerville for Malen at half-time, and two minutes later it was mission impossible for Sweden, Gakpo pushing in from close range after another dangerous low cross from Dumfries.
Gakpo scored a nice fourth goal in the 54th minute, turning inside his defender before firing low into the bottom corner.
Elanga scored when he broke away from the Dutch defense and passed the ball over Verbruggen.
West Ham’s Summerville made it five in the dying minutes with his second goal in North America.
“Of course, this match was better than the previous one. That’s what you want, the ideal is to win from the beginning,” Koeman said.
“But if this is a sign that there is more to come, then we are going in the right direction.”
