Netherlands World Cup squad 2022: All projected 26 players on Dutch national football team roster for Qatar

The Netherlands enter the FIFA 2022 World Cup as an international enigma. They produce some of the top talent across the European club landscape but have fallen short at the international level for almost the last decade.

Following a superb showing at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, where they finished third by beating hosts Brazil 3-0 in the third-place match, it has been nothing but disappointment for the Oranje.

They failed to qualify for either Euro 2016 or the 2018 World Cup, and were bounced in the Round of 16 at Euro 2020.

Louis van Gaal, the manager for their 2014 World Cup run, returned to take over last August following the Euro 2020 disappointment, and he has this talented group poised for a course correction in Qatar.

The Dutch are considered the strongest side in Group A, thanks to the presence of hosts Qatar, but they will have their hands full with Senegal and Ecuador, plus any potential host boost for Qatar.

Still, this is a squad absolutely exploding with top European club talent, and they’ll prove a dangerous presence if they can make it, as expected, into the knockouts. Anything less than a place in the quarterfinals is likely to be a disappointment for the Dutch.

MORE: Closer look at Netherlands’ group opponents at the FIFA World Cup

Provisional Netherlands World Cup squad 2022

Manager Louis van Gaal had until Friday, October 21 to submit an official preliminary list of 35-55 players to FIFA, from which he will select his final 26-man roster for Qatar by Monday, November 14.

Here’s the list he named at a press conference.

Final 26-man Netherlands World Cup roster

Cuts will be made across the board, as Louis van Gaal has a number of young players at his disposal, but he’ll look to find experience where possible, likely leaving some of those promising youngsters on the outside looking in this time around.

Below is a projected final 26-ma squad, assuming all his players are fit and ready to go.

🗣 LvG’s take on our provisional squad for the @FIFAWorldCup.

📝 More: https://t.co/F5tZpfmIu9 (🇳🇱)#NothingLikeOranje pic.twitter.com/kd1n24ZpSy

— OnsOranje (@OnsOranje) October 21, 2022

Netherlands national team stars, strengths & weaknesses

The Netherlands will be looking to make a statement after years of international disappointment. They missed the 2018 World Cup in Russia and failed to exit the Round of 16 at Euro 2020.

Manager Van Gaal is as experienced as they come, leading the Dutch side to the top of their World Cup qualifying group, with seven wins from 10.

Van Gaal’s coaching record is superb — he led Barcelona and Manchester United at the club level, while also taking charge of the Oranje at the 2014 World Cup, where they finished third, beating hosts Brazil 3-0 in the third-place match.

Stars

The Dutch side is captained by Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk, who has emerged as one of the best players in the world during his time at Anfield. However, the Orajne leader has struggled for form this season at club level, leading to questions at the back for Van Gaal with a wealth of options at his disposal.

Their main goalscoring threat is Barcelona forward Memphis Depay, who has managed to maintain his international form despite playing a bench role for the Blaugrana.

Strengths

The Oranje have a wealth of young talent to choose from all over the field, with PSV winger Cody Gakpo leading the revolution. Defenders Jurrien Timber and Tyrell Malacia are other young players to watch, while Bayern midfielder Ryan Gravenberch could be a useful bench option.

Defensively, the Dutch are extremely deep. Van Dijk may not be in form but he remains a top player, while Stefan de Vrij, Matthijs de Ligt, Jurrien Timber, and Daley Blind are all playing at a high level for their big European clubs.

Van Gaal will look to use this strength by deploying a three-CB system and get as many of his best defenders on the field as he can.

Weaknesses

The biggest missing component of the Dutch side is experience. For all his success for club and country, Van Dijk has not played in a major international tournament. He missed Euro 2020 with an ACL tear, and the Netherlands  did not qualify for both Euro 2016 and the 2018 World Cup.

Behind Van Dijk, former experienced leaders Giorginio Wijnaldum and Bruno Martins Indi have not made the squad, leaving just Frenkie de Jong and Daley Blind as the other ever-present members.

Positionally, the biggest weakness for the Netherlands is without a doubt at goalkeeper. Tim Krul has been cast out by Van Gaal after failing to turn up for penalty training session in September, and previous starter Jasper Cillessen seems to have lost his place to 38-year-old Ajax shot-stopper Remko Pasveer. There’s a lot of uncertainty between the sticks for the Dutch.

Netherlands World Cup group

The Oranje were drawn into Group A of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Only the top two teams in each group will advance.

The Netherlands are the highest-ranked team in Group A, thanks to the presence of hosts Qatar as the Pot 1 side.

The Dutch will open the tournament against Sadio Mane and Senegal before taking on Ecuador and Qatar, needing to watch out for the host boost which has proven a real danger over the years.

World Cup Group A fixtures and match schedule

Netherlands World Cup squad, lineup

Opening the tournament against a strong Senegal side, Van Gaal will likely look get as many of his top defenders on the field as possible. It looks plausible that he’ll deploy a pair of high-flying wing-backs to flank his mainstay midfielders, and get players high up the field. They’ll be a force for Senegal to deal with.

Netherlands projected starting XI vs Senegal

Netherlands projected starting lineup (3-4-3): Cillessen (GK) — De Vrij, Van Dijk, De Ligt — Dumfries, Klaassen, De Jong, Blind — Gakpo, Depay, Bergwijn.

Can Netherlands replace players on World Cup roster?

Once the final 26-man roster is official, participating teams at the World Cup can only make changes before the first game of the tournament, and only in the case of extraordinary circumstances.

According to the official tournament rules (page 32), “a player listed on the final list may only be replaced in the event of serious injury or illness up until 24 hours before the start of his team’s first match.”

The team in question would need to submit a medical report to FIFA and if the world governing body determines “the injury or illness is sufficiently serious to prevent the player from taking part in the FIFA World Cup” then the replacement will be allowed. 

The replacement player must come from the preliminary list of players submitted to FIFA in October.