Edouard Mendy:
For each hero there’s a villain, and if Gakpo’s day summed up the lifetime of a striker, then Mendy’s was the right counterbalance. Who can be a goalkeeper? The Chelsea man was largely untroubled for 84 minutes, however his first misjudgement would show expensive, as he ran from his line to punch away De Jong’s supply and obtained nowhere close to it, Gakpo heading into the unguarded internet. There can be one other mistake for the Netherlands’ second aim too, Mendy weakly pushing Memphis Depay’s tame shot straight into the trail of Klaassen, who gleefully accepted his reward. 2-0, recreation over. Having misplaced his membership place to Kepa Arrizabalaga lately, this was not an evening to rebuild Mendy’s confidence. He’ll must put it behind him shortly, or his aspect will likely be on their approach dwelling.
Matthijs de Ligt:
It’s honest to say that Louis van Gaal is just not wanting choices to play on the best of his three-man central defence. For this recreation he chosen De Ligt, forward of the skilled Stefan de Vrij and the up-and-coming Jurrien Timber, however the Bayern Munich man endured a tough night towards Ismaila Sarr. He was always troubled by the Watford man’s tempo and operating energy, committing extra fouls than any Dutch participant. One in every of them, early within the second half, earned him a yellow card and leaves him strolling a disciplinary tightrope for the remainder of the group. The Netherlands did, in equity, end with a clear sheet, however Timber and De Vrij will really feel they’re in with a shot of beginning towards Ecuador. De Ligt can have anticipated higher of himself.
Sadio Mane:
We already knew it, however this recreation merely served to underline it; Senegal wants Sadio Mane. Badly. Aliou Cisse’s aspect matched the Dutch for probably the most half. They had been robust defensively, with Kalidou Koulibaly notably good, and had loads of the ball in midfield, with Idrissa Gueye, Cheikhou Kouyate and Nampalys Mendy brilliant and energetic. However within the last third? Not a lot. Senegal had 15 pictures however solely 4 on the right track. Sarr was good, denied a aim by a great Virgil van Dijk block, however a lot of his finest work was away from aim, and neither Dia nor Krepin Diatta supplied a lot. It is a match of big-name absences, in fact, with the likes of Karim Benzema, Reece James, Paul Pogba, Timo Werner and N’Golo Kante all on the lacking record. Mane’s absence, although, appears to be like just like the one which could possibly be costliest, when it comes to his aspect’s prospects.