Second straight Nations League defeat: Serbia beaten 1-2 by Netherlands at ‘Rajko Mitić’

Serbia has suffered its second straight home defeat in the Nations League, this time 1-2 to the Netherlands at the “Rajko Mitić” stadium in Belgrade, in the second round of UEFA Nations League A Group A2, as VAVEL‘s live coverage reports. Sunday’s game (September 27, 2026), refereed by Poland’s Szymon Marciniak, was decided by Mexx Meerdink’s brace.

The Netherlands took the lead in the 30th minute, when Meerdink scored after the referee had awarded a penalty two minutes earlier. Serbia reacted immediately after the break: Luka Jović equalized in the 46th minute, assisted by Saša Lukić, igniting the hopes of the home fans. But the celebration was short-lived — in the 69th minute Meerdink scored again, this time assisted by Guus Til, giving the “Oranje” the 1-2 win.

According to lineups confirmed by Serbian sports media, coach Veljko Paunović lined up Serbia with: V. Milinković-Savić; Nedeljković, Babić, Pavlović, Terzić; Gudelj, Lukić; Živković, Stanković; Sergej Milinković-Savić; Joveljić. On the other hand, Xavi Hernandez trusted Verbruggen in goal, with Dumfries, van Hecke, van Dijk, van de Ven in defense; Gravenberch, Veerman, Reijnders in midfield; and Summerville, Meerdink, Gakpo in attack. Dutch dominance was also reflected in the statistics: 68% ball possession for the Netherlands, against only 32% for Serbia.

This is Serbia’s second straight home defeat in this competition, after the 1-2 to Greece three days earlier at the same stadium, where the Greeks’ winning goal came in the 94th minute. With this result, Serbia remains winless in this campaign and in fourth place in Group A2. The Netherlands, coming off the 1-1 draw with Germany, climbs to 4 points and keeps pace with the leaders.

The return leg takes place on October 4 in the Netherlands, in the fourth round, where Serbia will seek revenge, while the Netherlands aims to strengthen its position in the group.