Robin van Persie slams "awful" Netherlands defeat

Robin van Persie has admitted that the Netherlands are in an "awful" position after a shock 3-0 defeat in Turkey left their Euro 2016 hopes hanging in the balance.

Danny Blind's men endured further hardship in their bid to reach France next summer as last night's setback left them fourth in Group A, two points off a playoff berth.

Third-placed Turkey need four points from their final two qualifiers to guarantee their place in the playoffs at least, and Van Persie admits that the Oranje are in a "terrible" spot.

"You could say that [it hurts], yes," he told NOS. "We no longer have qualification in our own hands. It's terrible. I find that really awful.

"Qualifying is very difficult, but we still have a chance. We must continue to fight to the end and win the last two games anyway."

Three days ago, the Netherlands lost to leaders Iceland who, along with Czech Republic, secured their place in Euro 2016 last night.

The Dutch, who have won just three of their eight games, losing four, face Kazakhstan away on October 10, before hosting Czech Republic three days later.