Zoltán Gera: We were beaten by a better team

Team captain and scorer of Hungary’s only goal against the Dutch, Bendegúz Bolla, said that what the team had discussed before the game - to stay concentrated throughout, had not worked:

"I think it was decided in our heads. They started scoring goals and we fell apart. If that happens, it will be punished. I tried to keep our spirits up and talked to them all the way through. However, if someone puts on the national-team jersey and doesn’t feel like we can’t do it, we still can’t fall apart; it shouldn’t happen here. This group is still young and these three matches have been good for gaining experience, but we could see how far away (we are from elite) international level and in how many areas we still need to develop".

Bolla’s teammate Alen Skribek talked of how he’d had to defend a lot despite being a winger, since the Dutch had attacked so much:

“We still tried to push after the first goals, but as the gap grew, I felt like we were falling apart. The attitude should have been the same at 4–1 as it had been at 1–0 or 1–1 against Romania".

Meanwhile, Gera said his team had had a good first half and had got into some good situations, but we’d started the second half badly and given away a penalty.

"In the second 45 minutes, the Dutch were more aggressive and tried to score goals, because goal difference was important to them. We were prepared for what would happen if we’d fall behind. The opponent was better and more experienced, which of course may be just an excuse, but our young group was beaten by a stronger team.

Having conceded three or four goals, we were unsure whether to still go forward or not, and in this type of situation find themselves in a very difficult situation. Our team has developed and proven it is determined. These boys should not be criticised now because of this result, because the next U21 squad will be built on them".