Fireworks bomb keeps Sparta visiting Vitesse from certain profit: “It’s a shame” Dutch football

By Dennis van Bergen

The shirt is dirty and sweaty, like that of a car mechanic who spent a day under the bridge polishing spark plugs. And that’s how he seems to feel, Adil Auassar, when he glances down at the field at about ten-thirty. It has been a wear and tear for him, the Vitesse-Sparta match. But what happened in the final phase, he will have experienced little. A fireworks bomb from the South stand ended the match. After the strike, football could not be played, as it turned out after half an hour of waiting. This is because the safety of the players could not be guaranteed. Bewildered, Auassar is faced with the profession with Sparta supporters.

At the time when millions of people fear for their lives two thousand kilometers away, something that is also reflected in Gelredome by football players and the public, it feels a bit uncomfortable to go out of your way because of a football match. It probably explains Auassar’s low-key pose when he thanks the accompanying Sparta audience.

And yet: the irritation is unequivocally present in him, a sportsman in all his fibres. After all, it is unclear what will happen with the 0-1 ‘win’ for Sparta, which is on the board after a final phase that has been downright noisy thanks to the Vitesse fans. Shortly before a fireworks bomb ended the duel, beer was also thrown. Another supporter in the South stand already entered the playing field just before.

It is certain that the situation is especially sad for Sparta. It is sometimes claimed of the Rotterdam club that there are mainly ‘beautiful football players’ walking around, types who get more satisfaction from a nice lob than from an ugly goal. Something that was also regularly the case in the past. In Arnhem, on the other hand, Henk Fraser’s team is once again emerging as a team in which -flatly put- the ‘bastards’ set the tone.

Such as star Joeri de Kamps. Just like in the duel with PSV, the danger of a yellow card lurks with every ball that comes even close to him. But, to be fair, the Amsterdammer also gives the Spangenaren the poison they need against Vitesse. Auassar, traditionally not averse to a fight every now and then, also. Although the yellow card he receives in the first half after a disturbance can simply be called stupid. Tom Beugelsdijk? He seems to get away well in the opening phase when referee Rob Dieperink gives him a yellow card after he has pulled Lois Opende down. Nevertheless, it is certain that you can also have the Hagenaar with you when it comes to fighting.

And the same apparently also applies to Jeremy van Mullem. Early in the first half he is the one who delivers the pass to Mario Engels, from which Adrian Dalmau makes the 0-1. It would be the introduction to a match in which the Spaniards are regularly under pressure from the disappointing Vitesse, but nevertheless remain well on their feet. Thanks in part to Maduka Okoye, the athletic panther under the Sparta bar. The German Nigerian returns a penalty from Openda after the break.

But whether the rescue ultimately yields three points for Sparta? The KNVB disciplinary committee must answer that question.