Feyenoord second in the Eredivisie after beating AZ

Feyenoord is PSV’s biggest challenger in the Eredivisie for the time being. The reigning champions won the home match against AZ (1-0), and with that, they climbed to second in the table with a seven-point gap to the dominant league leaders in Eindhoven.

Feyenoord and AZ did not prove that either will be serious challengers to PSV this season in the match. They created too few chances, and the play was sloppy from both sides. It is a strong possibility that both sides were not at their best after tough European competition fixtures in midweek against Lazio and Aston Villa.

Quinten Timber showed that he was desperate for a win from the first whistle. The midfielder made a mistake for the only goal on Tuesday against Lazio in the Stadio Olimpico. He wanted to avenge that against AZ. And he succeeded. Keeper Matthew Ryan stopped Timber from finding the net after two minutes. But he had no answer for a shot from distance by the midfielder in the 24th minute (1-0). Timber could shoot after a dribble by Alireza Jahanbaksch, who was given the nod over Luca Ivanusec, who is not entirely fit yet.

Calvin Stengs was the most attacking midfielder of Feyenoord, which pushed Ramiz Zerrouki to the bench. Gernot Trauner returned to the starting lineup for the champions after coming on against Lazio. Lutsharel Geertruida played the position for the injured Bart Nieuwkoop. AZ Manager Pascal Jansen picked the same lineup he used against Aston Villa. Wingers Ruben van Bommel and Ibrahim Sadiq were picked ahead of Myron van Brederode and Jens Odgaard again.

Again, it was Timber who was close to Feyenoord’s second goal in the opening phase of the second half. He twisted and turned through the AZ defence before being stopped by Ryan. Jansen made a change straight after the chance. He brought on Kenzo Goudmijn, Ernest Poku, and Myron Van Brederode, which did not bring the desired effect. Arne Slot, Feyenoord’s manager, took off Santiago Gimenez after an hour. The Mexican was unconvincing for a fourth match in a row.

Timber could look back at a good performance after Referee Danny Makkelie’s final whistle. He was close to the match’s second goal again 15 minutes before halftime. Goalkeeper Ryan looked like he had no chance, but the ball returned off the crossbar.