UEFA Cup contenders: preview

The master and his apprentice…

PSV demonstrated yesterday that we probably feel most comfortable in the UEFA Cup these days. A sad but realistic statement.

For now, Ajax, Feyenoord, NEC, Heerenveen and FC Twente are our contenders, maybe with PSV - a big maybe - thrown in the mix.

Ajax plays at home to “defend” a 1-5 lead over Serbian side Borac. Still, Van Basten doesn’t want to rest his top guns and play a B-team. “We need consistency, more than anything else and playing together is the best way to get that. So, apart from Stekelenburg, who has a slight shoulder-injury, and Gabri, whom I want to rest since he just got back from injury, I’ll play the usual suspects.”

Does that include Enoh? “Oh yes, he shown his value in keeping the balance. His skills are outstanding, he works smart and hard and he is very disciplined. He is almost an example for the whole group. Kenneth Vermeer will replace Stekelenburg.”

NEC traveled to Bukarest for the away game against Dinamo. The score after the home leg for NEC is 1-0 for the Mario Been coached team. When they arrived in Bukarest, hundreds of fans and dozens of media reps were waiting at the airport. The NEC group was totally flabbergasted, only to find out later these people were there to see Steau Bukarest off :-).

Heerenveen still can’t use Salomon’s older brother Bona Kalou against Portuguese side Setubal. The away game ended in 1-1 and Heerenveen coach Sollied wants to play full on attack. “That’s what we understand. That is also the way to keep control over our destiny. If we fail, at least we will have tried our all.”

Feyenoord may well have the hardest task against tough Swedish leaders Kalmar. Feyenoord lost 0-1 at home and Verbeek is still puzzling how to play and who to play, since Henk Timmer and Jon Dahl Tomasson won’t be fit to play. It was quite a challenge for Feyenoord to find 18 fit players for the UEFA players’ list.
Like Kostas Lamprou, a 17 year old junior goalie from Greece. Third goalie Torres is also injured, so it’s 39 year old Rob van Dijk in the starting line up with a 17 year old on the bench. Dwight Tiendali is also part of the group. The former youth international has been weighed at Feyenoord and determined to light for top football. Then there’s three more teenagers (Kermit Erasmus, Kevin Wattamaleo, Michal Janota) and the recently recoverd Twente signing Karim El Ahmadi to make the list complete.

If Feyenoord gets kicked out of the UEFA Cup, it will be a financial disaster as well. The Rotterdam based club counted on 1 Mio euros revenue, which is a lot for a poor club like Feyenoord.

Gertjan Verbeek doesn’t want to be negative or a doom-thinker. “Despite all the setbacks, we did show we can pull ourselves together when the going gets tough. We showed it against Ajax and saved a point and against FC Groningen, playing with ten players. I do believe in our chances. 1-0 is a tough starting point for them too. They don’t play very dominantly, more re-active kind of football. So, they must be puzzling too. What to do? Will they defend and soak up pressure or will they attack? Our challenge is clear: we need to attack and take risks. That makes life easier. Kalmar plays an away game as well. There stadium hasn’t been approved by the UEFA so they play 280 km from their own grounds. They’ll have to adjust to that too. It’ll be interesting…”