Netherlands vs. Iceland: Score and Reaction from Euro 2016 Qualifier

Iceland are one step closer to history.

The nation put itself in an amazing position to qualify for a first-ever berth in the European Championships, beating the Netherlands 1-0 behind Gylfi Sigurdsson's 51st-minute penalty conversion.

The Dutch spent nearly an hour down a man when Bruno Martins Indi was sent off in the 33rd minute, seeing a straight red card after he lashed out and swung at Kolbeinn Sigthorsson following a foul.

It was clearly a retaliation by Martins Indi, as soccer writer Leander Schaerlaeckens described:

It also made Indi a fairly infamous figure in Dutch soccer, per OptaJohan on Twitter:

It was a rough evening on a number of fronts for the Dutch, who also lost Arjen Robben to injury just minutes before going down to 10 men. Robin van Persie, meanwhile, never even got off the bench, a pretty big surprise considering the Netherlands needed to press for a goal late in the match. 

And to add insult to injury, it was also an historic loss for the Dutch, per Squawka Football:

Iceland, to their credit, looked sharp from the outset. Jon Bodvarsson had an excellent chance to score in the seventh minute after Johann Berg Gudmundsson volleyed a cross in front of goal for him, but the 23-year-old couldn't corral it into the net.

The Dutch struggled to offer many threats early on, though the sending off appeared to wake them up a bit, as they dominated possession for the rest of the first half. They couldn't crack Iceland's defense, however, and the game went into the half goalless. 

It wouldn't stay that way for long, however. 

Gregory van der Wiel's unwise foul on Iceland winger Birkir Bjarnason in the box gave Iceland the chance to take a lead in the 50th minute. Star midfielder Sigurdsson didn't miss, though 'keeper Jasper Cillessen managed to get a hand on the effort. He couldn't keep it out, however, and Iceland had their advantage.

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From there, the Group A leaders mostly held on for dear life, though Gudmundsson nearly doubled the lead twice, including four minutes after Iceland took the lead, though a curling effort that beat Cillessen clanged off the bar.

Not to be outdone, Iceland keeper Hannes Halldorsson made a handful of clutch saves in the final 10 minutes of the match, rejecting the furious Dutch advances and preserving a famous victory.

Post-Match Reaction 

The news went from bad to worse after Thursday's game, as Robben was ruled out of Sunday's vital clash against Turkey after the match, per Michael Bell of Football Oranje.

Robben didn't bite his tongue when it came to the actions of his teammate, Martins-Indi, either.

“As captain, I am someone who protects his players, but here I can do nothing else than to say that it is stupid," he told NOS, via Bell. "He let his team down and I find that very, very bad.”

Robben tried to remain optimistic as well, however. 

“It’s a small consolation that the Turks have a draw. We are third and it’s therefore still in our own hands to get the playoffs," he noted.  “Everything is still possible. This is a huge disappointment, but the beauty with football is that you always get new opportunities. We must take that chance.”

The Dutch, meanwhile, may not even qualify for the tournament, and are now in a battle with the Czech Republic—currently six points ahead of them—for automatic qualification. That's trouble for the Netherlands, as Ian Darke of ESPN noted:

Even if the Netherlands don't qualify as a top-two team in Group A, they could directly qualify if they finish as the best third-place team. Otherwise, they will enter into a playoff against another third-place team, with the winner of that two-legged playoff reaching the tournament.

"Reality is clear," Dutch manager Danny Blind said after the match, per Football Oranje on Twitter. "We must go for the third place."

That's assuming the Netherlands even finish in third place, however; the country is currently just a point ahead of Turkey for third place.

Iceland are now eight points clear of the Dutch and have almost assuredly clinched their place in the Euros, meanwhile. Max Bretos of ESPN thinks they could make some noise at the tournament:

These are heady times for Iceland, indeed.

What's Next?

The Dutch will face Turkey in a crucial contest on Sunday, while Iceland will face Group A cellar-dwellers Kazakhstan that same day, with a win guaranteeing their place at the Euros and a draw all but clinching their spot in the prestigious tournament.