LA LIGA
Depay move to Barcelona 'a relief' for Netherlands boss De Boer
Netherlands head coach Frank de Boer is relieved Memphis Depay's free transfer to Barcelona has gone through, because it removes a major distraction.
Barca confirmed on Saturday that the 27-year-old has agreed a two-year deal at Camp Nou that will officially go through when his Lyon contract expires at the end of this month.
Depay's future had been a hot topic of discussion ahead of the Netherlands' first two Euro 2020 matches – a 3-2 victory over Ukraine and a 2-0 win against Austria.
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De Boer now wants Depay to do his talking on the pitch and is hopeful the forward can become an even better player after joining the Catalan giants.
"We are all looking for an improvement from him," De Boer said at a news conference on Sunday, previewing his side's final Group C clash with North Macedonia.
"It is a relief over the transfer to Barcelona, and maybe it can give him something extra to perform at the highest level.
"We need Memphis performing at his best level to reach as far as we can in this tournament. We are full of confidence and he is too.
"He knows what he wants, that's the reason why he's a special player for us."
Dream big kid.. Dream big.Super excited to join my new club! @fcbarcelona???’? ???? pic.twitter.com/WnV1ufoBYw— Memphis Depay (@Memphis) June 19, 2021
Depay enjoyed an impressive final season in Ligue 1 with 20 goals, trailing only Paris Saint-Germain star Kylian Mbappe (27).
The former Manchester United attacker's 12 assists and 94 chances created, meanwhile, were more than any other player managed in France's top flight.
He scored a penalty for the Netherlands in their win over Austria to make it eight goals since De Boer took charge last September – ahead of Sunday's Euros games, only Belgium's Romelu Lukaku had scored more across all competitions for a European nation over this period (10).
And while Depay has not been at his best in Oranje's two group games thus far, De Boer has full confidence in the PSV academy product.
"I think Memphis is the first person to criticise his own game, to say he can do better than he's shown so far," De Boer said.
"He's self-confident and knows exactly what he wants. He knows perfectly well if he played well or not, so let's hope for us that he can reach the level we have in mind.
"But still, he's really important for this team. In your eyes he maybe performs a little less than expected, but he won and scored a penalty, created some chances too, so we are confident about him."
— OnsOranje (@OnsOranje) June 20, 2021
The Netherlands are already assured of top spot in Group C ahead of Monday's match with North Macedonia, who are no longer able to reach the last 16 in their first major tournament.
De Boer plans to make changes to his starting line-up but has warned that his side will not take their foot off the gas at the Johan Cruijff Arena.
"North Macedonia want to get their first ever points at a tournament," he said. "They are proud to be here, but we want to win and will be taking it seriously.
"There is no way we will be taking them lightly. They beat Germany 2-1 recently so this will not be an easy game."
The Netherlands have never lost against North Macedonia, winning two and drawing two of their four previous meetings.
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