Portugal went into tonight's game safe in the knowledge that victory would see them through to the quarter-finals, whereas the Netherlands needed a small miracle.
In spite of their predicament, the Dutch started brightly, and took the lead thanks to a long-range screamer from Rafael van der Vaart in the 11th minute.
Going behind forced Portugal to raise their game, and they soon began to dominate. Nani and Ronaldo ran the show, with the latter equalising on 27 minutes and securing victory with great team goal in the second-half.
The result saw Paulo Bento's men book their places in the quarter-finals as Group B runners-up, behind Germany.
Holland go home without registering a single point.
Read on for Sports Mole's analysis of the 90 minutes in Kharkiv.
Portugal statistics:
Shots 23
On target 8
Possession 42%
Corners 7
Fouls 17
Holland Statistics:
Shots 13
On target 3
Possession 45%
Corners 5
Fouls 9
Was the result fair?
We'd say so. Nani and Ronaldo ran the show for Portugal, who always looked dangerous on the counter-attack. The Netherlands had decent spells, but never really played as a unit.
Portugal's performance
Paulo Bento's men took a while to settle into the game, but once the momentum began to flow, they became a dominant force. Nani and Ronaldo linked up well, and caused all kinds of problems for the Dutch. Portugal will be one to watch as the tournament progresses.
Holland's performance
The Dutch scored a wonderful goal through Rafael van der Vaart, only to run out of steam shortly afterwards. Arjen Robben and Wesley Sneijder looked dangerous at times, but Bert van Marwijk's side looked like a group of individuals rather than a team.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Cristiano Ronaldo: The Real Madrid man is the obvious choice for the man of the match award. Ronaldo silenced his critics tonight, terrorising the Dutch defence through some great link-up play with Nani. He was unlucky not to come away with the match ball, with his 89th minute effort coming back off the post.
Referee performance
Nicola Rizzoli endured some criticism for his performance in England's opener against France, but he kept a lid on things tonight. That said, the Italian didn't exactly have his work cut out as its wasn't the most heated of games, despite what was at stake.
Biggest gaffe of the game
A 71st minute sitter by Nani. The Manchester United man had a good game, but Ronaldo laid out the ball to him on a plate with all the trimmings, and he should have put it away.
What next?
Portugal: The Portuguese have a quarter-final with the Group A winners the Czech Republic to look forward to.
Holland: It's back to the drawing board for the Dutch. They clearly need to work on resolving the unrest that has risen up in their camp, as that surely played a part in their Euro 2012 demise.
