AMSTERDAM, (Reuters) – The Netherlands made an emphatic return to major tournament football by snatching a 3-2 win over Ukraine on yesterday in a thrilling Euro 2020 match after they looked to have thrown away a two-goal lead.
Defender Denzel Dumfries headed the winner in the 85th minute after Ukraine had clawed their way back into the game from two goals down thanks to a stunning curled strike from Andriy Yarmolenko and a Roman Yaremchuk header.
The Dutch had dominated large parts of the frenetic Group C match and deservedly went in front in the 52nd minute when captain Georginio Wijnaldum smashed a loose ball high into the net and striker Wout Weghorst doubled the advantage six minutes later with a scrappy finish.
Dumfries had wasted a glaring chance to score the opening goal late in the first half when he missed the target with a glancing header but he more than made amends with his late strike, helped by erratic goalkeeping by Ukraine’s Georgi Bushchan.