Netherlands Set Sights On Euro 2024 Victory, De Ligt Confident In Team's Potential

Matthijs De Ligt believes the Netherlands have a strong chance of winning their first international trophy since 1988 at Euro 2024. De Ligt, who will participate in his third major tournament for the Oranje in Germany, missed the final four games of their qualifying campaign due to injury.

The 24-year-old had another inconsistent season with Bayern Munich, making 22 Bundesliga appearances and was benched as the Netherlands concluded their preparations against Iceland. Despite his age, De Ligt has made 45 appearances for his country and is one of the more experienced players in Ronald Koeman's squad heading into the tournament.

De Ligt is confident that the selected 26-man group is well-equipped to handle the pressures of tournament football. "It's good that we have a lot of guys at top teams in Europe," he said ahead of their Group D opener against Poland in Hamburg on Sunday. "That's very important for a tournament like this because it means we have the necessary experience playing against top players every three to four days."

He added, "We have a lot of quality across the board. We have to take it game by game but I think we can certainly go far."

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The Netherlands have faced several injuries leading up to the tournament, with Barcelona's Frenkie De Jong being the latest to withdraw from the squad. Despite these setbacks, De Ligt believes that not having a standout player could be advantageous for their Euro 2024 campaign.

"It means that everyone has their nose on the same starting line and are all pulling in the same direction," De Ligt noted. "We have a nice, good group. It's about performance. We are working well on that. We have a group that can grow closer together, on and off the field."