Ronald Koeman announced his 26-man Netherlands squad on Wednesday and left some notable players at home, including Liverpool's Jeremie Frimpong. The manager explained that Frimpong's availability worries him.
Check out the full 26-man Netherlands squad HERE
"It’s true that he’s been injured quite often this season; against Ecuador, he came on as a substitute but had to come off again very quickly," Koeman said about Frimpong, who he's replaced with another Premier League winger.
"That’s a physical issue, but I’ve also chosen someone else to play on the right wing: (Crysencio) Summerville. That comes as no surprise to me, as I wanted to call him up back in March. I like that sort of player who is reliable on the pitch. He’s very capable of playing on the right flank, too, but his work ethic is exceptional. "
Injury and doubts
Koeman misses a number of players through injury. In addition to Xavi Simons and Jerdy Schouten, who'd both torn their ACLs in the last two months, the Netherlands will be without Matthijs de Ligt, Emmanuel Emegha, and Stefan de Vrij.
Young midfielder Kees Smit and Luciano Valente were not called up, despite having made their debuts for Oranje in recent games. Koeman opted for others based on the types of midfielders they are: "I would have loved to have taken them both, but we have to make choices.
"When Schouten is out of the picture, you look at your midfielders, and you can’t compare Smit or Valente to De Roon or Schouten. He’s a real defensive midfielder, a lock on the door. Smit and Valente aren’t like that."
Bournemouth midfielder Justin Kluivert has recovered in time, just like Memphis Depay and Jurrien Timber.
"We’ve selected Kluivert because he’s recovered well from his surgery," Koeman said. "He hasn’t played much, but we deliberately let him train for two days so we could see for ourselves. I’m impressed by how fit he looks. We’ve still got two weeks to go."
"I would have preferred him to have had more playing time. He’s set to start for Corinthians tonight, so we’ll have to wait and see. I have changed my mind, though. Looking back, I wasn’t sure whether I should have started him at Euro 2024. So I might do things differently next time."
Timber still has a question mark behind his name and is doubtful for Saturday's UEFA Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain. Koeman has prepared for a situation in which Timber won't be fit for the World Cup.
"We have two players on the standby list: Ian Maatsen and Lutsharel Geertruida, and this is linked to Jurrien Timber. The situation with him is that he was due to train with the squad today, to see how things look ahead of the weekend. They have the Champions League final on Saturday. We’ll have to wait and see if he’ll make it."
Surprise returns
Koeman has instead opted for Atalanta's Marten de Roon, PSV's Guus Til, and Brighton's Mats Wieffer. De Roon returns to the Oranje squad after not being called up since March 2024, while Til has played just one game for the Netherlands since June 2022. Wieffer was not called up for the games between June 2025 and March 2026, but has been given the nod over Sunderland's Lutsharel Geertruida and will be used as a right-back, Koeman revealed.
As for De Roon, Koeman said that the mood was good when he called the Atalanta captain to tell him the news: "Marten de Roon was delighted when I rang him. I’d been in touch with him before; he knew he was on the shortlist.
"He’d actually expected not to make the squad, but after Schouten’s injury, it started to cross my mind more, as I began looking at the other midfielders – what sort of players they are. You shouldn’t compare attacking midfielders with his role."
Guus Til adds another profile to the squad, Koeman said. "I called him up because of his performances for his club, his fitness, and the type of player he is. Someone who brings something different to the table compared to other number 10s. I hadn’t made a final decision yet, but I’d had a good feeling about it for a while. I don’t see him as a striker, initially. More as a number 10, playing behind the striker."
Wout Weghorst was given the nod over Burnley striker Zian Flemming, despite the latter scoring 11 goals for the relegated Premier League side this season. Koeman explains the role of Wout Weghorst, who scored twice for Oranje against Argentina at the 2022 World Cup.
"He (Weghorst) has his role in the team. He’s very useful in that role. I can’t see anyone else who can do that. In those moments during a match when you can bring him on."
Flemming does not fit that same role, the manager explained. "In the way we want to finish a match, with set-pieces. There are so many moments when Weghorst can add value. You might not see that, but I do. That’s a difference of opinion. In that respect, Flemming doesn’t add value for me, given the strikers we already have. They’re different from Weghorst, after all."
The Netherlands play warm-up games against Algeria in Rotterdam and Uzbekistan in New York City before opening their FIFA World Cup campaign against Japan on Saturday, June 14th.