BERLIN (Reuters) - The Netherlands overpowered harmless Austria 2-0 while Belgium bounced back to see off resilient Denmark following the second round in the Euro 2020 group stage on Thursday.
The “Elftal” romped into the last 16 after clinching a top spot finish in Group C thanks to the 2-0 victory over Austria.
The hosts broke the deadlock with eleven minutes played after great assistance of Austria defender David Alaba, who fouled Denzel Dumfries inside the box. Memphis Depay stepped up and made no mistake to put the Dutch ahead.
Austria tried to respond but was never able to cause a lot of trouble in front of the host’s goal area.
Just when the visitors gained momentum in the second half, the Netherlands killed the game in ice-cold style with 67 minutes gone when substitute Donyell Malen was squared into the path of Dumfries, who tapped home at the far post.
With the second win in as many games, the Netherlands (6 points) secure a first-place finish in Group C. Ukraine (3 points) sit on the second placed followed by Austria (3 points) and winless North Macedonia (0 points).
At the other game in Group C, Ukraine keep their last 16 hopes alive after snatching a 2-1 win over resilient North Macedonia at the National Arena Bucharest.
North Macedonia was able to hold the pace with Andriy Shevchenko’s side in the early stages. As the match progressed Ukraine cracked North Macedonia’s twice as Andrey Yarmolenko marked the opener in the 29th minute before Roman Yaremchuk established a two-goal lead five minutes later.