Netherlands captain Virgil van Dijk has urged his team to rediscover their "will to win" ahead of their Euro 2024 last-16 match against Romania on Tuesday.
Despite having a talented squad, the Netherlands have struggled in the tournament so far.
Drawn in Group D with heavyweights France and Ralf Rangnick's impressive Austria, the Netherlands finished just ahead of a lackluster Poland and qualified as one of the four best third-placed teams.
Van Dijk, in particular, faced criticism from former Dutch midfielder Rafael van der Vaart, who slammed his "disgraceful performance" against Austria in the Netherlands' final group game.
"I want him to show some passion," said the former Oranje playmaker.
Still considered one of the best defenders in the world, 32-year-old Van Dijk was at fault for Austria's decisive third goal in their 3-2 win, which sent the Alpine nation through as group winners.
"I know I can do better and it should be better," admitted Van Dijk. However, the Dutch captain was not alone in bearing responsibility for the loss, with Memphis Depay and Donyell Malen missing several chances.
In the last 16, the Netherlands will face Romania, who surprisingly topped the closely contested Group E, thanks largely to their opening round 3-0 win over Ukraine, while they drew and lost their remaining matches.
'Harsh words'
The Dutch will need to improve if they hope to reach the quarterfinals of the Euros for the first time since 2008, let alone emulate the 1988 Oranje side and win a European Championship on German soil.
With a win, a loss, and a draw from their three group games, the Dutch have faced significant criticism, which Van Dijk says he "completely understands."
"Things overall can and should be better," the Liverpool defender stated after their 3-2 defeat to Austria, adding, "maybe we've been overestimating ourselves."
Van Dijk's assessment of the team's attitude at the tournament is particularly concerning.
"A lot had to be said, and we had to analyze a lot. It was not the tactics where things went wrong. It was mainly the will to win, so we have talked about that – and with harsh words," Van Dijk explained.
With a population less than a fifth the size of neighboring Germany, the Netherlands may struggle to consistently compete among the European elite, but a lack of desire is a damning assessment for the proud football nation.
'Really very bad'
The criticism hasn't just come from outside; coach Ronald Koeman has regularly aired his grievances with the players publicly.
Koeman substituted Joey Veerman in the first half against Austria for Xavi Simons, a player he has also criticized for not working hard enough.
"I can list quite a few mistakes," Koeman said after the Austria game, adding, "we started badly in many aspects."
"There was a lack of pressure, and we lost the ball too often, particularly at the start. We were really very bad."
Teams at major tournaments don't get much time to work things out, but the Dutch are still favored to get past Romania, who had only won one of their 16 Euros matches before beating Ukraine.
However, that win came against one of Europe's big guns: a 3-2 victory over England in 2000.
The Dutch will be wary of such an upset, having a more recent reminder of the dangers of underdog sides after they lost 2-0 to the Czech Republic in the last 16 stage of the Euros in 2021.