Tijjani Reijnders shoots past Greece goalkeeper Kostas Tzolakis, scoring the 2-2 during the UEFA Nations League game in the Toumba Stadium in Thessaloniki, October 1, 2026.
Tijjani Reijnders shoots past Greece goalkeeper Kostas Tzolakis, scoring the 2-2 during the UEFA Nations League game in the Toumba Stadium in Thessaloniki, October 1, 2026.
Oranje managed to salvage a point away against Greece on Thursday after a poor first half in Thessaloniki. Xavi’s side drew the UEFA Nations League game 2-2, coming back from 2-0 down at halftime thanks to goals from Virgil van Dijk and Tijjani Reijnders.
It leaves the Dutch side second in Group B after three games behind Greece, who are top with seven points. Xavi’s side face Serbia on Sunday to end the international break.
Jurrien Timber was given a starting spot, replacing Jan-Paul van Hecke, who picked up an injury. Another player missing through injury was Cody Gakpo; his spot was taken by Ruben van Bommel. Xavi made two more changes to his side with Quinten Timber and Guus Til replacing Ryan Gravenberch and Tijjani Reijnders.
Greece were dealt a setback early on. Christos Tzolis, who scored a disallowed goal a few minutes earlier, went off with a hamstring injury. However, his replacement Giorgos Masouras did a more than reputable job replacing the Arsenal winger, getting a goal and an assist in the first half.
Masouras got his assist for the first goal in the 23rd minute. A long ball by keeper Konstantinos Tzolakis was won by Masouras ahead of Denzel Dumfries to Fotis Ioannidis; the forward took full advantage with a curled effort low into the far corner.
The Greeks, hot off a historic win against Germany away a few days earlier, were buoyant and forced Bart Verbruggen into a save a few minutes later. Konstantinos Karetsas hit a shot from an acute angle when a possible pass to striker Vangelis Pavlidis may have been the better option.
But the Greeks made it 2-0 in the last minute of the half. A poor pass by Ruben van Bommel went straight to Ioannidis, and his low cross found Masouras, who reacted quicker than Jurrien Timber to place the ball into the net.
Xavi made three substitutions at halftime, bringing on Noa Lang, Tijjani Reijnders and Ryan Gravenberch for Van Bommel, Quinten Timber, and Guus Til.
It had an effect immediately, with Oranje coming out with fresh impetus and forcing the Greeks back. This led to their first goal on the hour mark. A corner from Joey Veerman was headed into the net by the team captain Virgil van Dijk.
Denzel Dumfries had two goals disallowed after this, both due to offside decisions.
Despite Oranje’s dominance of possession, they struggled to create clear-cut chances, with substitute Joshua Zirkzee forcing Tzolakis into a save from a header in the 89th minute.
This was right before the pressure finally told, and Xavi’s side got their equalizer. A cross from Lang was overhead-kicked towards goal by Gijval Zechiel, making his debut for Oranje; his attempt was blocked, and it fell right to Reijnders, who smashed it hard into the net.