FC Den Bosch will play PSV at home on Wednesday evening for a place in the quarter-finals of the KNVB Cup. The prospect reminds former FC Den Bosch player Ruud Kaiser (65) of the all-decisive penalty with which he eliminated PSV from the cup in 1987. It earned the Den Bosch club a place in the semi-finals and history could repeat itself, according to Kaiser. “Anything goes in the cup,” he laughs.
Almost forty years after his decisive penalty, Kaiser still gets that same feeling when he thinks back on the match. “A euphoric moment, I still feel it now,” describes the former FC Den Bosch player.
And yet the cards did not seem to have been properly shuffled for the Den Bosch club before half-time. “We were 2-0 behind at half time. A lot of people thought it was over. We faced the team that won the European Cup a year later.”
Yet the residents of Den Bosch managed to recover. It became 2-2 at the end of the second half. “Not much happened in extra time so it went to penalties. Then I became the hero”Kaiser laughs.
“If I make it, we will be in the semi-finals.”
The former left winger also remembers every detail of the shot in question. “I was nervous and knew: if I make it, we will be in the semi-finals and if I miss we still have one chance. That gave me some peace of mind.”
In a swirling stadium he tried to keep his cool. “I put the ball on the spot, but didn’t look up. I just thought ‘take your own corner, top right’. Van Breukelen tried to lure me out of the tent, but I remained focused,” he reflects.
“Everyone went crazy.”
And that paid off. After a short run-up, Kaiser kicks the ball just a few centimeters under the crossbar. “Van Breukelen could never reach it. It was fantastic. I ran to the corner flag and hung there in the fences with 18,000 people. Everyone went crazy.”
He eliminated the very strong team with the all-decisive penalty kick. “It was a big party. In the old players’ home we played the polonaise and drank beer. That was still possible then,” Kaiser laughs.
Yet the current coach of VVV-Venlo under 19 fears that the people of Den Bosch will face a major challenge on Wednesday. “We were top 6 in the Eredivisie at the time, you can’t imagine that anymore, but anything can happen in the cup. When it comes to penalties, PSV gets nervous and then the fourth penalty goes in. History can repeat itself,” he laughs.
