Ayoub's Netherlands win with a smile

The Netherlands have already booked their place in the UEFA European Under-17 Championship semi-finals with a Group B game still to go and midfielder Yassine Ayoub puts it down to hard work – and having a laugh.

A 1-0 defeat of a cautious Romania team on Friday in Belgrade ensured the Netherlands clinched top spot in their group, having previously defeated Germany 2-0. FC Utrecht player Ayoub knew Romania would not make it easy and is delighted to have ensured a last-four tie next Thursday regardless of how they do against the Czech Republic three days before.

"I'm really happy with this game," Ayoub told UEFA.com. "It wasn't a really good game but we won it, and we are really happy to have made it to the semi-finals. We had watched them, and from their first match we knew they played like this. We played our own game."

Romania sat back even when 1-0 down to an early Tonny Trindade de Vilhena strike but Ayoub and his team-mates were not put off. "No, it was not difficult," he said. "We knew how Romania played, we'd trained for this. We are delighted with the three points."

If the Czech Republic, who need a win on Monday to ensure progress, were hoping the Netherlands will ease up for their game, they will be disappointed. "We must keep our concentration – every game is important," Ayoub said. "We have to win it all. We always keep our focus, just like today, to take three points."

While they have proved a tight, hard-working outfit on the pitch, the Netherlands squad have also looked perhaps the most relaxed off it in the Group B base in the Serbian capital. "We are a team, we know each other, in the youth competition in Holland we play each other," Ayoub revealed. "It's good to laugh and have fun – and you see it, we have won both games."