For the first time in 16 years, Netherlands have made it through to a European Championship quarter-final. For a nation which has won the Euros before it has been an extraordinary period of underperformance in the competition, including one outright failure to qualify at all.

Given this run of non-achievement came on the back of five successive super-impressive outings between 1988 and 2004 – champions, semis, quarters, semis, semis – it makes their return now to the last eight all the more welcome, all the more important and all the more surprising.

The race to be top scorer in Germany is also becoming clearer and clearer, with Cody Gakpo very much in the mix:

So just one Round of 16 encounter left now – here’s how the last eight ties look:

Quarter-final 1, Stuttgart: Spain v Germany (1700)

Quarter-final 2, Hamburg: Portugal v France (2000)

Quarter-final 4, Dusseldorf: England v Switzerland (1700)

Quarter-final 3, Berlin: Netherlands v Austria/Turkey (2000)

“We played a good game and showed a great reaction from the last match. We’re very pleased. After the last game, we needed a reaction and today was a good step in the right direction.

“We talked a lot about aggression and the intensity, defending as a team. I’m very happy that we won. The physio told me yesterday that I was going to score the first goal today, so that’s why I ran to him [when I was celebrating].”

But how did the individual players perform? Here are The Independent’s ratings for Romania v Netherlands:

A slow start again but that was comfortably the best showing of the tournament so far from the Netherlands, a rejigged midfield much more effective and their forward line warming to their work. Cody Gakpo impressed, Xavi Simons sparkled and Donyell Malen added the gloss to end Romania’s Euro 2024 adventure.

Ronald Koeman’s side will face either Austria or Turkey in Berlin on Saturday night.

Donyell Malen puts the icing on the tompouce, darting away up the left and firing a fabulous finish past Florin Nita as the Dutch go dancing into the last eight.

Daley Blind will get two of those four minutes. Memphis Depay takes off his headband as he departs with the job surely done.

It’s two of the Dutch substitutes who threaten to combine though, Micky van de Ven not quite able to find an onrushing Wout Weghorst having produced one of his canters up the left.

Up goes the board to signal that there will be four additional minutes.