As the messy permutations for the round of 16 twisted and changed during this wild match, one thought crystallized in the madness: Austria is a side England would not want to face anytime soon.
If there was a second instinct, it was to wonder again how Manchester United’s draft horse manager has created such compelling dark horses from his side in these Championships. Good for Ralf Rangnick, good for Austria, bad for anyone who takes it lightly.
When they arrived here, there was no guarantee that they would come from a group that included France and the Netherlands.
To surpass it? Well, that’s really impressive and their elevation to another sector of the draw should be a source of relief for England.
This was a match where we saw a few Austrian vulnerabilities, but it was also a draw where they showed so much more.
Borussia Dortmund midfielder Marcel Sabitzer was the match winner in a pulsating duel in Berlin
Sabitzer managed to squeeze in his shot from a tight angle to give Austria their third lead of the afternoon
The Netherlands advance to the knockout stages as one of the top third-place teams
They pressed the orange into the squash, they attacked with speed, but more than that, they had the courage to respond quickly, having twice erased the lead.
Despite all the twists and turns in which the Netherlands fought back from 1-0 and 2-1 before Marcel Sabitzer’s strike, Ronald Koeman’s side were on level terms for only 22 minutes during the match and were not at ease for a second.
His day was something of a nightmare, starting with his reaction to a rather blunt performance in the draw against France.
He had chosen to make three changes, including Lutsharel Geertruida, Joey Veerman and Malen and Xavi Simons.
To give an idea of how those substitutions turned out: Veerman was hooked on Simons after 35 minutes and Malen experienced the first half from hell.
There was some bad luck about his own goal in the sixth minute as it came from a dropped interception to prevent Alexander Prass’ low cross from finding Marco Arnautovic’s run behind it.
Those deflections are less dependent on judgment than luck, so Koeman’s fury on the touchline focused more on the freedom given to Prass on the left flank after seeing him wreak havoc there a moment earlier.
Donyell Malen (right) tried to get back and help his defense, but ended up putting the ball past his own keeper
The Borussia Dortmund winger put through his own net to give Austria an early lead against the Netherlands
Liverpool forward Cody Gakpo continued his good form throughout the tournament with an effort that brought the Netherlands back on level terms
As far as Marlen is concerned, greater blame would be placed on the opportunity he subsequently squandered. The Netherlands didn’t get many, because these Austrians are fabulously well organized off the ball, but when one went their way, via a neat ball between Depay’s central defenders, it only had to be finished halfway decently.
One on one with Patrick Pentz and shooting on the turn, Malen moved wide. During the half, Pentz didn’t have to make a single save and his teammates celebrated. To illustrate, they had a passing streak of over 30 passes and a thumbs up from Rangnick.
Koeman? He was less happy. Before the half was over, he had switched personnel and ditched his system for a 4-2-3-1.
Combined with what we can assume was a candid chat during the break, there was an immediate impact on the restart. Geertruida provided a platform by winning possession from Arnautovic deep in the Dutch half, before Simons moved to a three-on-two attack and played on the left for Gakpo.
With one touch he bought some easy space from Philipp Lienhart and with another he knocked Pentz around him.
Only 12 minutes passed before Austria took the lead again. The goal came from Patrick Wimmer’s delicate ball that broke the line, after which Florian Grillitsch’s cross from the near line thundered in via Schmidd’s forehead.
Romano Schmid headed home from close range to restore his team’s lead against the Netherlands
Memphis Depay clawed his team back into the tie in the 75th minute with a beautifully taken effort
The Atletico Madrid striker’s celebrations came shortly before VAR reinstated the strike
Austria qualified top of Group D thanks to their win and France’s draw with Poland in the other tie
Once again, the Netherlands found their way back, when Depay scored the 2-2 on the chest and made a volley, which was initially disallowed by the referee for offside, after which the VAR was able to intervene correctly.
The spot erupted, but it was a short-lived relief, with Sabitzer getting behind Jerdy Schouten and receiving a razor-sharp ball from Christoph Baumgartner. He drilled the winner into the small space between Bart Verbruggen and his near post.