Brian Brobbey and Cody Gakpo each scored two goals to lead Netherlands to a 5-1 victory over Sweden on Saturday in the World Cup, bouncing back from a disappointing draw in its opener and moving atop Group F standings.
Netherlands dominates early
Brobbey's goals came in the first half, helping the Netherlands get off to a great start and roll to the big win after playing Japan to a 2-2 draw on Sunday. The victory gives Netherlands a group-leading four points, while Sweden has three points. Japan and Tunisia were scheduled to play later Saturday.
The Dutch game plan to play out wide to open up Sweden and cross to Brobbey worked perfectly early. He put the Netherlands on top in the fifth minute when Gakpo crossed into the middle of the box and Brobbey one-timed it with his right foot before tumbling forward to the grass.
His second goal came when he took a cross from Denzel Dumfries while sliding and just got his right foot on the ball, scoring inside the far post in the 17th minute.
Gakpo extends lead after halftime
Gakpo, who also had an assist, extended the lead to 3-0 just after halftime, scoring in the 47th minute off a cross from Dumfries. He matched Brobbey when he scored on a right-footed shot from the left box in the 54th minute.
Sweden couldn't build on its strong performance in a 5-1 walloping of Tunisia in its first match. The loss to the Dutch was its biggest World Cup defeat since losing 7-1 to Brazil in 1950.
Sweden's response and near miss
Anthony Elanga's left-footed goal cut the lead to 4-1 in the 59th minute and allowed Sweden to avoid the shutout. Sweden had plenty of chances to score before that, but Netherlands goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen was brilliant in the first half with four saves.
Sweden appeared to have cut the lead to 2-1 on a header by Gustaf Lagerbielke in the 44th minute, but he was ruled offside. Lagerbielke is a baron from a noble family in Sweden; his father and grandfather are counts.
Royal guests and fan support
But he wasn't the only royalty in the stadium Saturday as the Netherlands had two very special guests cheering them on: King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima watched from a luxury suite. The crowd of 68,777 was largely made up of fans of the Netherlands, many of whom made their Oranje Fanwalk 2 1/2 miles from Rice University to Houston Stadium on Saturday morning.
Final goal and upcoming matches
Crysencio Summerville, who assisted on Gakpo's second goal, added a goal for Netherlands in the 89th minute and celebrated with NBA star Steph Curry's “night night” gesture. Sweden finishes group play Thursday night against Japan at Dallas Stadium, and Netherlands meets Tunisia that night in Kansas City.
