Jurrien Timber and his twin brother were ripped apart on a special night for their family
Jurrien Timber of the Netherlands
Jurrien Timber had a tough night against Greece in the Nations League(Image: UEFA via Getty Images)
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Jurrien Timber and his twin brother have been slammed by Dutch media following the Netherlands' Nations League draw with Greece. Tijjani Reijnders scored a late equaliser as Xavi's fought back to draw 2-2 in Thessaloniki.
Fotis Ioannidis and Giorgos Masouras put the home side 2-0 up at the break before Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk pulled a goal back on the hour. After Denzel Dumfries had seen his goal ruled out by VAR for offside, Reijnders lashed home a rebound in the 89th minute to secure a point, but there were a few positives for the Dutch, who have now failed to keep a clean sheet in 11 games.
It was a special night for the Timber brothers, Jurrien and Quinten, who became the first siblings to figure in the same Netherlands starting line-up since Frank and Ronald de Boer in 2002. However, that didn't save the pair from criticism.
Pundit Hans Kraay Jr called the team's first-half display "really dreadful" as he took aim at defenders Jurrien, Van Dijk and Tottenham's Micky van de Ven. Kraay Jr, 66, who played for a string of clubs, including Brighton and PSV Eindhoven, told ESPN: "The Netherlands wanted to build up with three men, with Jurrien Timber, Virgil van Dijk and Van de Ven.
"I get the impression that more and more opponents of the Netherlands are leaving Van de Ven completely free, because he is not that good at building up play."
He then singled out Arsenal's Jurrien, adding: "By the way, I also thought Jurrien Timber was very poor in the build-up."
The most savage criticism was reserved for Quinten, who joined his brother in the Premier League in the summer after Crystal Palace signed him from Marseille. Kraay went on: "We had more mediocre players as well, Quinten Timber, for example.
"I get the impression that the fine box-to-box midfielder he was at Feyenoord, especially under Arne Slot, has turned into: everything is wild and uncontrolled.
Quinten Timber of the Netherlands
Quinten Timber was hooked at half-time against Greece(Image: Getty Images)
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"Wild, a poor first touch of his own and then trying to make up for it with a foul. Everything about him is a bit wild at the moment."
Xavi seemingly wasn't impressed with Quinten either, as he withdrew him at half-time and replaced him with Liverpool's Ryan Gravenberch. After the game, Jurrien, who has been eased back into action by Mikel Arteta following a serious groin injury, conceded he wasn't 100 per cent match sharp. He said: "I am tired. I've been out for a while, of course, but I need to regain my rhythm and get fit."
Referee Marco Guida, Virgil van Dijk of Netherlands during the UEFA Nations League 2026/27 Group A2 MD3 match between Greece and Netherlands
The Dutch can't keep clean sheets despite their star-studded defence(Image: Getty Images)
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On the performance, he said: "It wasn't good. Very sloppy, we lost a lot of duels. But I look at myself first. Ultimately, I'm happy that we came back, but the first half wasn't good enough."
On making history with his brother, he added: "The ultimate dream was to stand on the pitch together, but that moment with the national anthem was also very special. That wasn't intentional, but apparently he was standing at the front too, and then suddenly we were standing next to each other."
The Netherlands, currently second in Group B behind leaders Greece, host Serbia on Sunday.