Van Wolfswinkel hat-trick sinks Poland

The Netherlands continued their flawless start in qualifying Group 4 with Ricky van Wolfswinkel scoring a hat-trick in a 4-0 victory away to Poland.

Penalty woe
Poland will point to a missed penalty by Patryk Małecki after 20 minutes as a major turning point in the contest with Van Wolfswinkel and Nicky Kuiper making the hosts pay before the interval. The FC Utrecht forward stole the show after the resumption, scoring in the 49th and 66th minutes to move Cor Pot's side above Poland and to the top of the section with a maximum nine points.

Level pegging
Tim Krul's penalty save from Małecki's spot-kick set the tone for the downfall of Andrzej Zamilski's side, who also have nine points but from two more matches. Van Wolfswinkel struck for the first time on 41 minutes, finishing at the second attempt after goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny had saved his initial header. Four minutes later it was 2-0, Kuiper firing in an outstanding effort from 15 metres.

Red card
Any thoughts of a Poland comeback were quickly dispelled after the break when Van Wolfswinkel added a third before completing his hat-trick by outsmarting Szczęsny in a one-on-one situation. Poland attacker Artur Sobiech was sent off in the final seconds.