Mar 22, 2024, 6:06 p.m. ET
Netherlands He won again and with the presence of his figure: Memphis Depay. The selected one that was left out of the World Cup 2022 in the quarterfinals against Argentina dispatched a rout against Scotland, but the real triumph was the return of its all-time top scorer.
Memphis Depay returned to the Netherlands national team after almost a year of absence with the orange shirt. @OnsOranje
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Since March 2023, when he suffered a muscle injury against Gibraltar, Memphis Depay had not been available again for the Netherlands team until this Fridayin his reappearance in the 4-0 victory against Scotland at the Johan Cruyff Arena heading to Euro 2024, without any goals from him, but from Tijjani Reijnders, Georgino Wijnaldum, Wout Weghorst and Donyell Malenthe last two in the final stretch.
Memphis, top scorer in the history of the ‘Oranje’, with 44 goals in 89 gamesthen began a sequence of muscle injuries with Atlético Madrid and its national team that separated him from each and every one of the matches of the Dutch team, with which he is a crucial footballer within the scheme of Ronald Koeman, his coach.
He included it from the start this Friday against Scotland, which will also compete in the next Euro Cup (it is in group A along with Germany, Hungary and Switzerland, while the Netherlands is in group D, along with France, Austria and the winner of Wales-Poland) and which he defeated between the initial ups and downs of his game, but with a final victory, less than three months before the final phase. His punch was conclusive.
In the 40th minute, Tijjani Reijnders unbalanced the match. The Milan midfielder scored his first goal as a full Dutch international in the seventh game. It is one of the new values of the ‘oranje’ team. He did not play in the last 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
In the friendly Jeremie Frimpong made his international debutthe right winger who has been causing a sensation in the German Bundesliga for two years, even more so this season with Xabi Alonso leading Bayer Leverkusen, in which he is a fundamental footballer. The full-back played an hour of mourning, before being replaced by Denzel Dumfries.
It had already been changed, when Cody Gakpo intervened again for Wijnaldum’s 2-0 that sealed the duel in the 72nd minute. In the 77th minute, Memphis, without a goal, gave way to Weghorst, who scored 3-0. The 4-0, moments later, was from Malen, also coming off the bench. The fourth consecutive goalless victory against the Dutch team.