Netherlands reach Euro last eight with Romania win

THOMAS KIENZLE/ AFP

Cody Gakpo scored his third goal of the European Championship and Donyell Malen added two more late on as the Netherlands defeated Romania 3-0 in their last-16 fixture on Tuesday.

The Dutch had been lambasted by their media and fans for a poor defensive display in their final group game, a 3-2 loss to Austria, but were more composed and in control as they reach the Euro quarter-finals for the first time since 2008.

They took the lead after 20 minutes when Gakpo drilled a low angled shot home at goalkeeper Florin Nita's near post before Malan's late double helped set up a quarter-final with Austria or Turkey, who play later on Tuesday.

The Netherlands had two thirds of possession and almost five times more chances in the game to underline their superiority as Virgil van Dijk struck the post with a header and Gakpo had a second effort ruled out for offside.

More from Sports News

News

  • 'Peace is not far away' says Erdogan after Putin meeting

    Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, fresh from a meeting with Russia's Vladimir Putin, said he hopes to discuss a Ukraine-Russia peace plan with US President Donald Trump, adding that "peace is not far away".

  • UAE, Serbia deepen ties with new political agreement

    His Highness Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Serbia’s Foreign Minister Marko Đurić. have agreed to deepen political coordination after signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) during talks in Abu Dhabi.

  • UAE strengthens child protection measures

    The UAE has introduced changes to its laws governing the care of children of unknown parentage, expanding custody options and strengthening child protection measures.