The Dutch players, managed by Ronald Koeman, ended up third in Group D after their performance was riddled with chaos. The match began with an own goal from Donyell Malen just six minutes in, giving Ralf Rangnick’s well-drilled Austrian team the upper hand.

Cody Gakpo levelled the score after half-time, and although Romano Schmid’s strike for Austria was equalized by Memphis Depay later in the game, it was a rollercoaster of a match that ultimately did not favour the Netherlands.

Marcel Sabitzer’s late goal sealed the deal for Austria, securing the winners the top position in the group following France’s draw with Poland. Van Dijk’s defence was under fire, especially for the part he played in leaving the door open for Sabitzer’s decisive goal.

His misalignment with the defensive line allowed the Borussia Dortmund midfielder to blast the ball into the net past goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen. Post-match, Van Dijk appeared downcast as he admitted: “I don’t have an explanation for this performance.”

Van Dijk’s lacklustre post-game remarks drew immediate flak, with ex-Netherlands international Van der Vaart expressing particular discontent with his comments.

“We played the way Virgil van Dijk just talked!” the Ajax legend said.

“We just had to watch a disgraceful performance! I want the captain from our country to show some passion!”

Van der Vaart’s views were shared by the legendary Marco Van Basten. The former striker of the Dutch generation that won Euro 1988 said: “Virgil van Dijk has to show more leadership. He is our captain, he is the man responsible and he is the big leader of our team. I critized him before, unfortunately it lead to zero improvement. It’s disappointing that I have to keep repeating myself.”

The 2-3 defeat caused the Netherlands to fall to third place in Group D, meeting one of the top teams in Groups B, C and E in the 1/8 round. There is a high possibility that the Netherlands will immediately encounter Spain, England or Belgium in the next round, making their chances of advancing significantly reduced.

“I can list quite a few mistakes,” Koeman said angrily after the match.

“We started poorly, did not defend well, lacked determination, pressure and constantly lost the ball. The players ran a lot but were not in the right position so it was very bad and could not control the game.”

The poor performance against Austria put the future of Koeman – who has a contract until after the 2026 World Cup – in doubt. The 61-year-old coach accepts responsibility, but believes that now is not the time to talk about his future. Koeman believes that the Netherlands has a team with enough quality to play better from the 1/8 round.

Meanwhile, Austria shocked everyone by surpassing France and the Netherlands to win Group D, and will meet the second team in Group F in the next round, which is Türkiye, Czech or Georgia. Coach Ralf Rangnick praised Austria for receiving the award for its courageous and energetic performance against the Netherlands. Meanwhile, former midfielder Sebastian Prodl believes that Austria can aim to reach the Euro quarterfinals for the first time.