Greece and the Netherlands served up a treat in Thessaloniki on Thursday as the sides played out a pulsating 2-2 draw in their UEFA Nations League fixture.
The Hellic nation led 2-0 at the break, courtesy of goals from Fotis Ioannidis and Georgis Masouras, but the Oranje clawed their way back into it with a splendid second-half performance.
Virgil van Dijk made it 2-1 in the 59th minute before Tijjani Reijnders brought Xavi's side level in the penultimate minute of normal time.
What made the game extra-special for all the BVB supporters was the face-off between two of their newest stars, Konstantinos Karestas and Joey Veerman, both of whom had a good match.
Karetsas, Greece's reliable outlet again
As we saw against Germany, Karetsas was once again Greece's attacking outlet here. He was crucial to their chances in transition, but also carried the balll forward pretty well and attacked spaces in persistent attempts to disrupt Netherlands' rhythm.
In 83 minutes of action, the 18-year-old teen made six crosses and a team-high of two key passes. His well-taken corner in the 63rd minute found Vangelis Pavlidis inside the box, but the striker's header flew narrowly wide.
Starting on the right side of the four-man Greek midfield, his attacking output was hampered by Greece repeatedly losing possession in midfield. But whenever Karetsas had the ball, the Netherlands had a reason for caution.
In the 37th minute, he produced a real moment of concern for the visitors when Kostas Tsimikas found him on the right, and the Dortmund starlet cut inside to drive a shot that needed Dutch goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen's intervention.
Karetsas, however, left a lot to be desired in his duels, coming second-best most of the time while also losing possession a staggering 16 times which tells you that he can struggle against a high-pressing team.
Veerman, the Dutch orchestrator
Speaking of Veerman, the other Dortmund player in action here, he had a more influential match for his side, controlling the game's tempo as their deep-lying playmaker. He completed 90 of his 103 passes, most of which came in the opposition half, while also laying 11 crosses, the most by anyone in the game.
As the Oranje enjoyed a lion's share of possession, the 27-year-old was their chief distributor, always looking to find openings in Greece's stubborn defense with crisp and precise passing. He also created four chances in the match, one of which led to a goal.
After two unsatisfactory deliveries in the first half, Veerman took another corner after the break. But this time, it found Virgil van Dijk inside the box and the Liverpool ace headed it home for 2-1. It marked Veerman's first assist since rejoining the squad and how much he deserved it for his creative brilliance so far, is quite understated.
Win-win for Dortmund
Although the match ended in a draw, Dortmund were the biggest winners here. The club saw two of their newest stars continue to get valuable experience on the international stage while also demonstrating their qualities to the full extent.
In Karetsas and Veerman, they have two very different, but exceptionally talented players who can propel them to a new stratosphere if allowed to play to their strengths.
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