HOUSTON — Fans at NRG Stadium arrived talking about Alexander Isak and Viktor Gyökeres but left with the names of Brian Brobbey and Cody Gakpo ringing in their ears.
The result is the Netherlands getting their FIFA World Cup campaign back on track and a slight easing of the pressure on Ronald Koeman, as expectations threaten to consume him.
Koeman’s decision-making is under scrutiny. They were ahead twice against Japan in their Group F opener, but his substitutions contributed to a loss of initiative, territory and, eventually, the lead in a draw.
And so eyebrows were raised before the Netherlands’ 5-1 win over Sweden on Saturday, when Crysencio Summerville, who scored an excellent goal against Japan, was left out in favor of Brobbey, with Donyell Malen shifted to the right flank in Koeman’s 4-3-3 system.
Malen looked bright against Japan, but Sunderland striker Brobbey delivered the sort of all-action center-forward display that makes him look almost unplayable on days like this.
This is Brobbey’s first World Cup start. It was only his 14th international appearance. He had scored only one goal. After 17 minutes, he had two more, and Sweden couldn’t cope.
It felt like a moment for Koeman to gloat.
“No, I won’t because I know as a coach you plan for substitutes, you have a plan to tackle things in a different way, and sometimes, things go better than other teams,” he said. “It depends on the shape, the fitness of the players. The choices we made were based on what we thought we could be confronted with, and Brian fitted in better in that plan.”
Victor Lindelof spoke a day earlier about how he watched clips of center-forwards before matches to help him prepare for the challenge he faces.
We might never know whether Lindelöf studied Brobbey or Koeman pulled off a surprise in that regard, but either way, Sweden looked overwhelmed until the first hydration break altered the game’s momentum, as is increasingly the case at this tournament. The damage was already done, though.
Five minutes in, Dutch goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen launched a ball upfield where Brobbery outmuscled Isak Hien and found Tijjani Reijnders, who fed Gakpo on the left. His pinpoint cross found Brobbey, who finished his lung-busting run with a tap-in.
“One of the strongest forwards back to goal, so he gave us that challenge, and it changes the dynamic of their play,” Sweden head coach Graham Potter said.
Brobbey’s second goal was deft. Denzel Dumfries crossed from the right, and Brobbey got the faintest of touches to guide the ball into the far corner.
“What is most important is he’s become really fit in the Premier League, where, in the beginning, he didn’t play, later on he got his chances, took them and now he’s super fit,” said Koeman of Brobbey, who scored seven goals in 31 league appearances for Sunderland. “I have read sometimes in a Dutch newspaper he was unable to play 90 minutes. Then, we’ve had a number of occasions where there were complaints, but he has grown in the meantime. He is fitter, sharper and developing really well.
“With one player, maybe things happen. Bit later with others, but he made the necessary steps. At Ajax Amsterdam, he really was not there. He just played. Maybe it made him think, ‘This is what is required of me.’ He was strong but not at the top of his fitness and that’s what he is now. That’s what leads to performance.”
The second quarter — as we should probably start calling it — was Sweden’s as Isak and Gyökeres began to stir into action, shifted into a back four. The two forwards combined well as Gyökeres tested Verbruggen shortly after Yasin Ayari wasted a glorious chance from Gyökeres’ superb left-wing cross.
Sweden thought they had halved the deficit just before the break when Gustaf Lagerbielke headed in Benjamin Nygren’s pass, but he was fractionally offside.
Instead, they were left to start the second half as badly as they did the first. Koeman subbed in Summerville for Malen at the break, and Summerville was immediately involved, freeing Dumfries to cross for Gakpo to convert at the far post, a millisecond quicker than Brobbey as he stretched in search of a hat trick.
Gakpo then cut in from the right and fired inside Kristoffer Nordfeldt’s near post, prompting Potter to make a triple change, including Anthony Elanga, who scored his team’s only goal four minutes later. He also produced a dazzling bit of skill to evade Micky van de Ven, but the Netherlands had the final say as Summerville dropped his shoulder and fired into the net from outside the box.
It felt as though so much would hinge on Memphis Depay’s availability, but he played only the final 18 minutes and still, Sweden were put to the sword, losing a World Cup match by three or more goals for the first time since 1958.
Suddenly, the Dutch federation’s stated aim of reaching the semifinals looks more realistic. Some even think they could go all the way.
“It could be that the way we play builds confidence. Of course, there was a lot of pressure on the team, especially because of the draw because of the first game, but now we have slightly more peace of mind with four months,” Koeman said. “There is one game within the group phase and you can build on what happened now. That was really good. Other teams know we can be dangerous.”
