There was certainly an air of controversy surrounding Wales’ 1-0 victory over a dogged Ukraine side on Sunday night, but the scoreline in the top-left hand corner was the only statistic that mattered for the Dragons, who ended 64 years of pain on the biggest international stage of them all.Ukraine captain Andriy Yarmolenko directed Gareth Bale’s free kick into his own net – resulting in Wales securing a ticket to Qatar and of course binge drinking across the country.Dragons are flying to Qatar – Wales complete the list of European passengers to the World Cup!Even without the factor of the Welsh being still under influence of celebrations, in tonight’s match against the Dutch – Oranje are considered favourites. And if you add their thrashing of Belgium in Brussels in the equasion – Wales have a lot to be fearfull about.Perhaps thanking their lucky stars that Belgium’s all-time record goalscorer Romelu Lukaku was forced off the field with a twisted ankle after just 27 minutes of action, the Netherlands produced a ruthless attacking display to humble the world’s second-ranked nation.Are they really one of the best teams in the world? Names say so but results don’tUnsurprisingly sitting at the League A Group 4 summit with one game down and five to go, the Netherlands are still unbeaten since that shock last-16 exit to the Czech Republic at Euro 2020 – winning seven and drawing three in all competitions since.It has also been over a year since the 2010 World Cup runners-up last suffered defeat of any kind on the road, where they are also unbeaten in four Nations League matches.When it comes to head-to-head matches, Oranje have played Wales on eight occasions previously and have come out on top in all eight of them, so Louis van Gaal’s side travel to Cardiff firmly intent on spoiling the Dragons’ World Cup party, even if the home crowd’s spirits cannot be dampened.Wales’s record against Netherlands. It is consistent at least 🏴🇳🇱 pic.twitter.com/UsoHxL2qe9— Matthew Phillips (@matt_the_jack) June 8, 2022 Rob Page’s players have three Nations League fixtures to navigate during a grueling six-day period after partying ‘long into the night’.Wales spent two years vying for promotion in League B before clinching a spot in the big time, and defeat to Poland represents their only loss in 11 fixtures across all tournaments, and Cardiff turf is nothing if not a fortress.Indeed, the World Cup participants are now unbeaten in 19 successive matches in front of their own fans since losing to Denmark in the inaugural Nations League.Netherlands manager Van Gaal should be working with a near full complement of players for Wednesday’s contest, and it would not be surprising to see the visitors line up with an altered starting eleven when taking Wales’ need to make changes into account.Netherlands defender Stefan de Vrij starts his press conference with a “congrats” for Wales following their World Cup qualification. pic.twitter.com/CzTAnVOFBl— Dafydd Pritchard (@DafPritchard) June 7, 2022 As Virgil van Dijk goes on holiday, Stefan de Vrij and Matthijs de Ligt are both candidates to return to the Dutch defence while Tyrell Malacia may earn just his fourth cap if veteran Daley Blind’s legs are in need of a rest.Van Gaal singled out his midfield contingent for their stellar showings in the win over Belgium, but there could still be room for those with rare appearances or uncapped players.As for the Dragons, Wayne Hennessey was one of the heroes of the hour on Sunday but could now be granted a rest as Danny Ward is drafted back into the side, as Chris Mepham and Rhys Norrington-Davies seek to earn starts in defence.Brennan Johnson looked a danger when he was introduced at the weekend and is also in contention to feature from the first whistle, and the same can be said for Jonathan Williams, Joe Morrell and Harry Wilson.UEFA NATIONS LEAGUEWednesday21.45: (5.20) Wales (3.60) Netherlands (1.80)21.45: (1.65) Belgium (3.80) Poland (6.25)***odds are subject to change
