FIFA Womens World Cup 2023: Netherlands Advance to Quarters With 2-0 Win Over South Africa

After securing a quarterfinal matchup against Spain, Netherlands manager Andries Jonker said his squad entered the Women's World Cup "with the conviction that we can beat everyone." With a commanding 2-0 victory in Sydney on Sunday, the Netherlands put an end to South Africa's historic maiden journey into the knockout stages of the Women's World Cup. Before overcoming South Africa and securing a spot in the last eight, the Netherlands had to face numerous nervous moments. Danielle van de Donk, a seasoned midfielder, will not be able to play against Spain because of his suspension after receiving his second yellow card of the competition. 

 

Van de Donk, a former Arsenal player who currently plays for Lyon and won the Champions League with them, sobbed inconsolably at the end of the game after having started each of the Netherlands' previous 15 World Cup games. After another exhilarating start to a game in this tournament, the Netherlands is two victories away from advancing to back-to-back championships. After Lieke Martens was stopped by a clearance off the line, Roord scored early on to make it six goals in as many minutes. Their second goal came as a gift from Swart, who let Beerensteyn's fairly simple shot slide through her grasp and into the goal. Despite being a terrible time for the goalkeeper, it gave the Netherlands their third victory of the competition. 

 

This was made possible by Van Domselaar's superb goalkeeping performance. The United States' equalizer prevented the Netherlands from defeating the four-time world champions, ending their nearly flawless World Cup run. Jonker, who worked under Louis van Gaal at Bayern Munich and Barcelona, has been entrusted with improving upon the USA's 2-0 victory over Sarina Wiegman's team at the previous World Cup in France. The Netherlands are in excellent form going into the quarterfinals, and they have Spain in their sights. Despite losing Jermaine Seoposenwe and Bambanani Mbane to injuries before halftime, South Africa battled with the Netherlands. 

 

The remarkable Kgatlana, who has scored twice and provided assists on another two goals during this World Cup, was once again dangerous against the Netherlands. The 27-year-old was disappointed by Van Domselaar despite having five of South Africa's seven shots on goal in this game. Stay tuned with us for FIFA live score, FIFA World Cup updates, and more!