Cody Gakpo continued his prolific run with a third goal in as many games and Frenkie de Jong also scored as the Netherlands beat hosts Qatar 2-0 on Wednesday morning (AEDT) to finish top of World Cup Group A.
It was a tighter affair in the second game as Senegal held out for a 2-1 win against Ecuador to book themselves a round-of-16 berth.
Winger Ismaila Sarr kept his cool to score a first-half penalty and captain Kalidou Koulibaly netted a second goal to see Senegal home at the Khalifa International Stadium.
Sarr scored his penalty in the 44th minute having earned the spot-kick himself, but Ecuador, who needed only a draw to reach the knockout rounds, equalised through Moises Caicedo.
That joy for the South Americans lasted only three minutes as Koulibaly restored Senegal’s lead, which they were able to hold onto for the remainder of the match.
The African champions finish second in Group A with six points from their three matches, one behind winners Netherlands and two ahead of Ecuador, whose tournament held much promise but has ended in bitter disappointment.
The Dutch will play the runner-up of Group B, which features England, Wales, Iran and the United States, in the round of 16, while Senegal will play the winner of Group B.
Gakpo’s powerful 26th-minute strike gave the Dutch a dream start against the hosts.
The Qataris had been eliminated after their 3-1 loss to Senegal and despite huge investment in state-of-the-art facilities to host the World Cup, they came up short again on the pitch.
They were not without their moments in a dull first half, forcing a couple of corners and threatening the edge of the Dutch area, but no sooner had they bared their teeth than they were hit with a gut-punch of a goal by Gakpo.
Davy Klaassen played an inviting ball into the path of the 23-year-old and he received it at pace, slicing through the heart of the defence before dispatching a well-placed shot past Meshaal Bersham to open the scoring in the 26th minute.
Four minutes into the second half, the Dutch struck again as a cross from Klaassen made its way to Depay and the Qatari defence was caught ball-watching as his shot was saved, allowing Frenkie de Jong to bundle it into the net.
Asian champions Qatar will go back to the role of tournament hosts and plotting the future of the game in their country.
AP, Reuters
https://www.watoday.com.au/sport/soccer/senegal-pip-ecuador-netherlands-beat-qatar-to-book-knockout-spots-20221130-p5c2cp.html
