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The Netherlands secured a powerful 5-1 win against Sweden, bouncing back to lead Group F after a disappointing World Cup opener against Japan that ended in a draw.
Brian Brobbey led the team to an early two-point lead with back-to-back goals in the first half, and Cody Gakpo extended the lead to 3-0 just after halftime, scoring in the 47th minute off a cross from Denzel Dumfries. He matched Brobbey when he scored on a right-footed shot from the left box in the 54th minute.
The Dutch gameplan to play out wide to open up Sweden and cross to Brobbey worked perfectly early. He put the Netherlands on top in the fifth minute when Gakpo crossed into the middle of the box and Brobbey one-timed it with his right foot before tumbling forward to the grass.
His second goal came when he took a cross from Dumfries while sliding and just got his right foot on the ball, scoring inside the far post in the 17th minute.
Swedish player Anthony Elanga’s left-footed goal cut the lead to 4-1 in the 59th minute and allowed Sweden to avoid the shutout.
Crysencio Summerville, who assisted on Gakpo’s second goal, tacked on a goal for Netherlands in the 89th minute.
Sweden had plenty of chances to score before that, but Dutch goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen was brilliant in the first half with four saves.
Sweden couldn’t build on its strong performance in a 5-1 walloping of Tunisia in its first match. The loss to the Dutch was its biggest World Cup defeat since losing 7-1 to Brazil in 1950.
The crowd of 68,777 was largely made up of fans of the Netherlands, many of whom made their Oranje Fanwalk 2 1/2 miles from Rice University to Houston Stadium on Saturday morning.
The team also had some special guests cheering them on, with King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima watching from a luxury suite.
Sweden finishes group play Thursday night against Japan at Dallas Stadium, and Netherlands meets Tunisia that night in Kansas City.
Additional sources • AP