Euro 2020: Tomas Holes, Patrik Schick help Czechs stun Netherlands in last-16

It was a calamitous outcome for the Dutch, who imploded after Matthijs de Ligt was sent off for a cynical handball 10 minutes into the second half, and they will now undergo some serious soul searching.

Tomas Holes and Patrik Schick scored second-half goals to take the Czech Republic into the Euro 2020 quarter-finals as they took advantage of a red card for the Netherlands to upset their more fancied opponents and win 2-0 in Budapest on Sunday (June 27). Holes powered home a 68th-minute opener after being set up by Tomas Kalas, as the Dutch watched on hopelessly in their own penalty area. Schick made sure of the Czechs’ surprise success with a close-range finish 10 minutes from fulltime, his fourth goal of the tournament, in front of a capacity crowd that provided a deafening wall of noise for most of an absorbing last-16 contest. “They were the favourites in this game, it is an unreal feeling to beat such a team 2-0,” said goalscorer Holes. “They were better with the ball, we struggled, but thanks to our team performance, we did not give them much space.” It was a calamitous outcome for the Dutch, who imploded after Matthijs de Ligt was sent off for a cynical handball 10 minutes into the second half, and they will now undergo some serious soul searching. De Ligt was sent off after a VAR review by Russian referee Sergei Karasev after punching away the ball as he tumbled to the ground in a tussle with Schick.