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

De Kuip plays host to a clash of the Group G titans on Thursday night, as the Netherlands and Poland reunite in Rotterdam in UEFA World Cup 2026 Qualifying.

Both nations boast six points so far, although the unblemished Dutch have a game in hand over the Eagles, who are playing their first match under new management.

Match preview

Showing no mercy to minnows Malta in their second World Cup qualifier, the Netherlands obliterated the world's 168th-ranked nation by eight goals to nil on June 10, as six different scorers made the net ripple in Groningen.

Memphis Depay and Donyell Malen both ended the evening with braces, while new Tottenham Hotspur teammates Micky van de Ven and Xavi Simons also got in on the act alongside further strikes from Virgil van Dijk and Noa Lang at Euroborg.

The mauling of Malta prolonged an unblemished start to World Cup 2026 qualifying for Ronald Koeman's troops, who clinched a professional 2-0 victory away to Finland first up and could hardly boast a more aesthetically pleasing record in Group G so far.

A pair of games, a pair of wins, 10 goals scored and zero conceded represents the perfect start to the preliminary cycle for Oranje, who sit one point behind leaders Finland but have two matches in hand, and June's successes were just what the doctor ordered for the hitherto inconsistent hosts.

Two victories from their last two matches is as many as the Netherlands had achieved in their previous nine games in all tournaments, as Oranje laboured to a UEFA Nations League quarter-final before being slain by Spain on penalties, but they have to go back to March 2021 for the last time they suffered defeat in World Cup qualification.

In contrast, Poland need only travel back to June for their last reverse in a preliminary World Cup period, as the Eagles' perfect start came to a disheartening end away to current group leaders Finland.

Thursday's visitors had got the job done against Lithuania and Malta in their opening two qualifiers - before also seeing off Moldova in a friendly before visiting Helsinki - but goals from Joel Pohjanpalo and Benjamin Kallman sunk the Poles in Scandinavia.

Jakub Kiwior's 69th-minute cap-in was only consolatory in a 2-1 loss, one that spelled the end of Michal Probierz's time as head coach, and the visitors are now adapting to life under Jan Urban, a former international who represented the Eagles at the 1986 World Cup.

Urban previously served as an assistant for the Polish national team at Euro 2008, but the 63-year-old now enters the unforgiving world of international management, where his first job will no doubt be to rebuild bridges with the legendary Robert Lewandowski.

The Barcelona veteran went on a self-imposed exile after Probierz stripped him of the captaincy, but he was quickly reinstated as Urban's skipper and will lead the Eagles into their 21st all-time meeting with the Netherlands, who have not lost to Poland since 1979.

Netherlands World Cup Qualifying - Europe form:

Netherlands form (all competitions):

Poland World Cup Qualifying - Europe form:

Poland form (all competitions):

Team News

Koeman cannot call upon Liverpool new boy Jeremie Frimpong owing to a recent hamstring injury, but the Netherlands are otherwise well-stocked for September's international period, where Corinthians striker Depay is out for a slice of history.

The former Manchester United man sits on 50 goals for his nation and needs just one more to overtake Robin van Persie at the top of the Netherlands' men's all-time scoring charts, but he is some way from catching 100-goal women's forward Vivianne Miedema.

Depay should lead the line from the first whistle with support from in-form Liverpool winger Cody Gakpo, whose Reds teammate Ryan Gravenberch could anchor a menacing midfield also featuring Frenkie de Jong and Tijjani Reijnders.

As far as Poland are concerned, all-time goalscorer and leading appearance maker Lewandowski is back to spearhead the Eagles' charge following the departure of Probierz, although he is lacking match practice so far this season owing to a muscular injury.

Lewandowski has played just 26 minutes of La Liga football in 2025-26, but Karol Swiderski, Adam Buksa and Krzysztof Piatek are alternative options up front if Urban plays it safe with the 85-goal Pole.

The visitors normally adopted a 3-5-2 shape under Probierz, but Urban tended to favour a four-man backline during his most recent managerial gig with Gornik Zabrze, either a 4-3-3 or an old-school 4-4-2.

Netherlands possible starting lineup:

Verbruggen; Dumfries, Van Dijk, Van Hecke, Van de Ven; De Jong, Gravenberch, Reijnders; Simons, Depay, Gakpo

Poland possible starting lineup:

Skorupski; Bednarek, Kedziora, Kiwior; Cash, Zielinski, Szymanski, Slisz, Zalewski; Lewandowski, Piatek

We say: Netherlands 3-1 Poland

New manager bounce and all that, but Urban's reign as Poland head coach is surely destined to end in defeat against a goal-happy Netherlands side.

It has been said before, but Oranje could have the look of World Cup dark horses come 2026, and the hosts should maintain their 100% record with ease here.

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