Preview: Netherlands vs Algeria - prediction, team news, lineups

Both bound for World Cup 2026, the Netherlands and Algeria will convene for a pre-tournament friendly on Wednesday evening.

Just before heading off to North America, the pair are set to clash at De Kuip, where Oranje have an excellent record.

Match preview

Continuing to fall short of football's top prizes, the Netherlands reached the semi-finals of Euro 2024, while they exited at the quarter-final stage of both the 2022 World Cup and 2024-25 UEFA Nations League.

Still, they will soon get another crack at securing an elusive global title, with their latest World Cup campaign kicking off against Japan later this month.

Sweden and Tunisia also await in a potentially tricky Group F, so Ronald Koeman's men must be ready to produce their best from the outset.

Warm-up games against fellow finalists Algeria and Uzbekistan will offer fringe players their last chance to break into the starting XI, while Koeman will be keen to extend a 10-game unbeaten streak.

Having won six and drawn two of their qualifiers to finish above Poland, the Netherlands then played a pair of friendlies in March, beating Norway 2-1 before holding Ecuador to a 1-1 draw despite Denzel Dumfries receiving an early red card.

Notoriously tough to defeat at De Kuip, Oranje now return to their favourite venue, aiming to maintain the momentum that might make them dark horses this summer.

Set for a first World Cup appearance since 2014 - and fifth overall - Algeria also secured their ticket in some style.

The Fennec Foxes topped Group G in the CAF qualifiers, suffering just one defeat across 10 fixtures and confirming their place with one round remaining.

While their quarter-final exit at this year's Africa Cup of Nations was disappointing, the North African nation can now turn their attention to an even more exciting assignment.

At the World Cup, they will face Jordan, Austria and Argentina in Group J, so just reaching the knockout phase could prove a tough task.

Before kicking off against the reigning champions in Kansas City, Vladimir Petkovic will take his squad to Rotterdam, aiming to build on some promising results.

Following two March friendlies - a 7-0 rout of Guatemala and a goalless draw with Uruguay - the Fennecs have kept clean sheets in no fewer than five of their last seven matches.

Netherlands form (all competitions):

W W D W W D

Algeria form (all competitions):

W W W L W D

Team News

Koeman delayed his announcement by two days to make sure that Memphis Depay and Jurrien Timber could overcome fitness issues, and both were ultimately named in his 26-man World Cup squad.

There was also a first call-up for West Ham United winger Crysencio Summerville, who missed out due to injury in March, while Atalanta captain Marten de Roon has replaced ACL victim Jerdy Schouten.

Elsewhere, Wout Weghorst was preferred to Burnley striker Zian Flemming, and Liverpool's Jeremie Frimpong has also been left out; Stefan de Vrij, Matthijs de Ligt and Xavi Simons are all sidelined.

Algeria's squad notably includes recalled midfielder Nabil Bentaleb, who was omitted from their Africa Cup of Nations campaign, but Ismael Bennacer surprisingly misses out.

Marseille striker Amine Gouiri is selected after skipping AFCON with a shoulder problem - he subsequently returned with three goal involvements in the 7-0 win over Guatemala.

Granada goalkeeper Luca Zidane made the cut despite suffering a serious facial injury in La Liga last month, while veteran winger Riyad Mahrez will captain the side.

Netherlands possible starting lineup:

Verbruggen; Wieffer, Van Hecke, Van Dijk, Van de Ven; De Jong, Gravenberch; Malen, Reijnders, Gakpo; Brobbey

Algeria possible starting lineup:

Mastil; Belghali, Mandi, Bensebaini, Ait-Nouri; Aouar, Zerrouki; Mahrez, Maza, Chaibi; Gouiri

We say: Netherlands 2-1 Algeria

Algeria's talented team can cause problems for the Netherlands, as the visitors have won seven of their last 10 games and usually score first.

However, most of those games were against lower-ranked opponents, and Oranje's record at De Kuip - where they have only lost twice since 1990 - suggests the home crowd will roar them on to a morale-boosting win.

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