Netherlands vs Japan: Mitoma Out, Depay Cleared, Group F Opener Props

Ronald Koeman confirmed on Saturday in Dallas that Memphis Depay is fit to start when the Netherlands open their 2026 FIFA World Cup against Japan at AT&T Stadium at 4 p.m. ET Sunday. Bart Verbruggen is also cleared in goal. On the other touchline, Japan plays this tournament without Kaoru Mitoma, who is out of the World Cup entirely with a hamstring injury suffered for Brighton in May (per Fabrizio Romano and ESPN). Netherlands is minus-105 on DraftKings, Japan is plus-265, and the draw is plus-250 (as of Saturday June 14, 2026 morning).

What Koeman Actually Said

Koeman in the pre-match presser, quoted by ESPN: "I prefer not to share this with you at this stage but Memphis is fit. He would be able to start the game. The past ten days, from the start of our tournament preparation, his fitness has increased." Depay had been a question mark throughout the camp. He played only three matches for Corinthians between March 22 and the end of the Brazilian club season after a right thigh injury, sat out the Netherlands' 2-1 friendly win over Uzbekistan in early June, and arrived in Dallas with the medical staff pacing him carefully.

The Netherlands' all-time leading scorer leading the line in the opener is the difference between a real World Cup campaign and a shaky one. Depay is the connector between Cody Gakpo's wide runs and Donyell Malen's penetration. Without him, Koeman is forced into a Brian Brobbey or Joshua Zirkzee shape that loses the build-up gravity Depay creates with his hold-up play between the lines.

Japan Without Mitoma

The Mitoma absence is the bigger story long-term. He was Japan's player of the year in 2024-25, scored the winner against England in March 2026 in a 1-0 friendly upset in London, and was the side's clearest world-class attacker. Hajime Moriyasu confirmed Mitoma would not recover in time when the squad was announced on May 15.

Japan replaces him with width from Junya Ito and a more central role for Takefusa Kubo. The 3-4-2-1 shape Moriyasu has settled on this cycle uses Ito as a right wing-back with Hidemasa Morita and Wataru Endo controlling the midfield. The plan against the Netherlands will be to compress space centrally, force Depay and Gakpo wide, and counter through Kubo and Ayase Ueda.

Japan has been one of the steadier sides in international football over the last 24 months. The win over England, the 4-1 win over Germany in 2022, the recent qualifying campaign that ended with a near-perfect record. The plus-265 moneyline here is fat if you trust Kubo to find a moment.

Betting Impact And Best Numbers

Netherlands at minus-105 is the chalk play but not the best number on the board. The bets that move:

Memphis Depay anytime goalscorer at plus-185 on FanDuel. He is starting, he takes the penalties, and Japan's set-piece defense has historically been a weak point.

Cody Gakpo anytime goalscorer at plus-160 on DraftKings. Gakpo has scored in three of his last four Netherlands matches.

Both teams to score at plus-115. Japan's wing-back system bleeds chances on the counter, and Memphis will get one quality look on the break.

Under 2.5 goals at plus-110. The Netherlands has been a low-event team in international friendlies this past year, with three of its last five matches finishing under 2.5.

The Netherlands minus-0.5 asian handicap is essentially the moneyline (around minus-115). The minus-1.5 line at plus-180 is where the value sits if you believe Depay creates two goals.

Takefusa Kubo's anytime goalscorer at plus-340 is the Japan ticket. He had 14 goals in 38 La Liga appearances for Real Sociedad last season. Against a Netherlands back line that often looks shaky against direct dribblers (Stefan de Vrij is 34 years old now), Kubo has a real path to a moment.

DFS And Prop Implications

The Mitoma absence collapses Japan's expected xG from roughly 1.2 to 0.9 in matchup models that price the squad changes (per RotoWire model breakdown). That makes the Netherlands clean sheet at plus-185 more interesting than its starting price.

For DFS soccer this week:

Depay is a near-mandatory premium play with confirmed start.

Kubo is the underpriced Japan exposure at minus-money tournament-long.

Verbruggen is a high-floor save play given Japan's likely shot volume from distance.

Group F Math

Group F is Netherlands, Japan, Sweden, and Tunisia. The four-team round robin means two automatic spots plus a third-place qualifying chance for the top eight third-place sides. Sweden and Tunisia are the likely third-place scrap. The opener Sunday is the de facto group decider for first place.

The Netherlands path requires winning this opener. Sweden and Tunisia are not pushovers, but they are not Japan. A Netherlands loss or draw Sunday makes the matchday two against Sweden a must-win and creates real round-of-32 elimination pressure on matchday three against Tunisia. That is the actual story of the moneyline. Minus-105 looks like a coin flip; the consequence of losing is closer to catastrophic.

What To Watch Next

Lineups should drop around 90 minutes before kickoff. Koeman has hinted at Verbruggen behind a back four of Hato, De Vrij, Van Dijk, and Aké. Frenkie de Jong and Tijjani Reijnders in midfield. Xavi Simons in the No. 10. Gakpo, Malen, Depay across the front. Watch Hato's matchup against Kubo on the right wing. That is the swing matchup.

Japan's next match is Tunisia on matchday two. Netherlands draws Sweden on matchday two. That slate is the real Group F filter for the round-of-32 picture.

Chad AI tracks every World Cup prop and futures line inside the app. The Soccer daily picks board is updated through every kickoff window.

Related StatSniper Coverage

The earlier Germany vs Curaçao and Netherlands vs Japan opener preview flagged the Gakpo-Depay attacking shape and the Netherlands futures price. The World Cup top-10 favorites breakdown had Netherlands at plus-1700 to win the tournament.

Sources: ESPN report on Depay and Verbruggen fitness (June 13-14, 2026), Fabrizio Romano confirmation of Mitoma squad omission (May 15, 2026), Al Jazeera Mitoma World Cup ruling (May 15, 2026), Ronald Koeman pre-match presser quoted in ESPN (June 13, 2026), DraftKings and FanDuel opener odds (June 14, 2026 morning).

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