The Netherlands could be serious contenders at Euro 2020 with home advantage through the group stages, and they will be looking to kick off their tournament with a victory over Ukraine on Sunday evening.
The Dutch do have a few injury issues and central defender Matthis de Ligt could well miss out as he sustained a groin injury in training.
Daley Blind is also a concern with an ankle issue, although he did return in a friendly against Georgia last weekend, while winger Viktor Tsygankov may miss out for Ukraine with an ankle problem.
Amsterdam Gives Netherlands an Edge
The Netherlands would be rated as the favourites if this fixture were taking place at a neutral venue and the fact they will be backed by their own fans at the Amsterdam Arena should give them an extra edge.
Frank de Boer’s men came through qualifying with three wins and one defeat at home, with that loss coming at the hands of Germany, but Ukraine’s away form is the key factor in deciding a home win could well be on the cards here.
The visitors did pick up a surprise 1-1 draw in France in their last away game in World Cup qualifying, but prior to that they lost five road games in a row and they have only won two of their last 13 fixtures outside of Ukraine – and those successes came at minnows Luxembourg and Lithuania.
The Netherlands are 20/39 to win, while the 27/20 on a home win to zero appeals given Ukraine have scored just three goals in their last six away games – despite De Ligt’s likely absence.
In-form Depay can get Among the Goals
Any contender for the Euro 2020 title needs a forward in hot-form and Lyon’s Memphis Depay could be that man for the Dutch.
The 27-year-old reported Barcelona target scored seven goals in the final eight games of the season for his French club side and has also been in excellent form at international level too.
Depay managed three goals in the Netherlands’ two warm-up fixtures prior to Euro 2020 and has seven goals in his last seven appearances for the Oranje.
Depay, who is likely to be his country’s penalty taker for the tournament, is 5/4 to score at anytime and 12/5 to score first.
De Roon a Contender for a Card
Marten de Roon seems set to start in midfield for De Boer after doing so against the Scots and Georgia and he stands out at 5/2 in the player cards market.
The Atalanta midfielder picked up eight yellow cards and one red in 35 Serie A games last season and has been booked eight times in 23 appearances for his country.
Ukraine have plenty of pace in their side with Andriy Yarmolenko, Oleksandr Zubkov and Marlos competing for places on the wings, and De Roon may well find himself in a ‘take one for the team’ situation when tracking back against quicker players on Sunday evening.
*All odds correct at time of writing
