Alonso finished second in a rain-affected and red-flagged Zandvoort race, 3.7s behind home hero Verstappen in the Red Bull.
When the race restarted with six laps to go after a long delay for a break in the weather, Alonso considered making a lunge on Verstappen into Turn 1, but he joked he thought better of it as he would have risked taking the Dutchman out and "not being able to exit the track".
"I did think about trying the move on the last restart but then I thought maybe I cannot exit the circuit, so I stayed calm in second," Alonso joked, referring to the sea of orange Verstappen supporters in the grandstands whose party he would have spoiled.
"The energy in Zandvoort is very unique. When this race came [on the calendar] I thought I would never experience a Zandvoort podium because I was not in a position to think about that. And today is going to be very special to share the podium with Max and Pierre [Gasly, third]."
It was a return to form and to the podium for Alonso and his Silverstone team after a spate of more difficult races before the summer shutdown.
Source: Autosport