da brdice： The former Manchester United striker came off the bench to net the winner as Ronald Koeman's side came from behind in Hamburg to secure victory

da jogodeouro： Netherlands left it late to secure victory in their Euro 2024 opener as Wout Weghorst stepped off the bench to be the hero in the Dutch's 2-1 win over Poland in Group D on Sunday.

Ronald Koeman's side made an encouraging start in Hamburg, but fell behind against the run of play as Adam Buksa – who started for Poland in place of the injured Robert Lewandowski – headed home at the near post from a corner.

The Oranje reacted well to going behind, however, and Cody Gakpo provided the equaliser as the Liverpool forward drove inside from the left before his effort from 20 yards deflected in past Wojciech Szczesny.

The story of the game, however, looked like being Netherlands' profligacy in front of goal, as Gakpo, Memphis Depay, Xavi Simons, Denzel Dumfries and Stefan de Vrij were all guilty of missing presentable chances over the course of game. However, as the game entered its final 10 minutes, Weghorst was thrown on, and the ex-Manchester United striker needed just two minutes to latch onto Nathan Ake's deflected cross and fire a first-time finish past Szczesny.

GOAL rates the Netherlands' players from Volksparkstadion…

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Bart Verbruggen (8/10):

Had no chance with Buksa's goal but made a three decent saves when Poland launched rare attacks, the best of which came in the final minutes from Swiderski.

Denzel Dumfries (4/10):

Caught under the ball for Poland's opener and didn't offer much at either end of the field. Dutch need more from their marauding right-back.

Stefan de Vrij (7/10):

Preferred to De Ligt and looked assured in everything he did, especially when defending one-on-one. Did miss a decent headed chance from a corner in the final 20 minutes.

Virgil van Dijk (6/10):

Imposed himself physically and almost scored with a volley from a corner. Caught out of position a couple of times defensively, but was usually able to recover.

Nathan Ake (9/10):

Basically a third centre-back when the Netherlands were in possession, and made a couple of excellent interventions. Also caused problems when he did step forward, and he ended up with assists for both goals.

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Jerdy Schouten (5/10):

Neat and tidy but rarely took risks with the ball. Certainly a downgrade from the injured De Jong.

Joey Veerman (4/10):

A little sloppy in his passing and couldn't impose himself on the game. Booked before being replaced at the hour mark.

Tijjani Reijnders (6/10):

Always looked to make himself available and create in the final third, but not everything came off for the AC Milan man.

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Xavi Simons (5/10):

Given license to drift inside but struggled to impose on himself on the game. Lashed a good chance wide before being substituted early in the second half.

Memphis Depay (4/10):

Some of his touches were mesmerising, but when it really counted, Depay couldn't provide. Wasted three presentable chances in front of goal, which almost proved decisive before Weghorst's heroics.

Cody Gakpo (8/10):

Netherlands' most potent attacking threat, the Liverpool forward drove at the Poland defence and caused problems with his dribbling and passing range. Deserved the luck which led to his goal.

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Georginio Wijnaldum (5/10):

Struggled to have much impact on the game after replacing Veerman for the final 30 minutes.

Donyell Malen (6/10):

Offered an initial spark after replacing Simons early in the second half.

Wout Weghorst (8/10):

Instant impact with an excellent first-time finish. Starting to become a bit of a tournament specialist.

Jeremie Frimpong (6/10):

Caused problems with his pace. Perhaps should have been on before the 80th minute.

Micky van de Ven (N/A):

Thrown on to help shore up the defence after Weghorst's goal.

Ronald Koeman (6/10):

Questions will be asked of his selection and how his team mark from set-pieces, but eventually threw on the right combination of substitutes to get the job done.