AZ won a solid match against Legia Warsaw in the Conference League. In the second group match, the Alkmaarders won 1-0 thanks to a goal by super striker Vangelis Pavlidis. After a red card from Mayckel Lahdo, AZ had to be careful, but they did not really get into trouble anymore.
Because AZ had miraculously lost the first match against Zrinjski (4-3), there was suddenly some pressure on the meeting with Legia Warsaw. In order to be able to spend the winter in Europe, the people of Alkmaar benefited from a good result in advance. Things were quite tense outside the AZ stadium. The police and riot police were on standby en masse around the section to ensure everything went smoothly with the infamous hard core of Legia. Apart from a few interventions with tear gas and a supporter trying to climb over the fence, everything went smoothly.
In the sixth minute, AZ could immediately breathe a sigh of relief. Legia Warsaw saw a goal disallowed. Midfielder Bartosz Slisz lashed out, after which the ball ended up at the feet of Tomas Pekhart via an AZ player. However, the striker was offside, so the goal was canceled. The Alkmaarders had difficulty playing football under the pressure of Legia in the subsequent phase, but did so well on a number of occasions. Mayckel Lahdo and Myron van Brederode were dangerous from the sides, but each time they just couldn’t serve Vangelis Pavlidis.
The biggest chance came from the foot of David Moller Wolfe. The left back had rushed up and received the ball from Van Brederode, but shot against goalkeeper Kasper Tobiasz. Although AZ managed to keep the Poles at a sufficient distance from the goal, Josué was still dangerous with a long shot. Just before half time, AZ finally got a taste of it. A flashy attack started with Sven Mijnans, who cleverly captured the ball, after which the ball reached Pavlidis via Lahdo and the Greek striker saw his effort end up in the side netting.
Pavlidis accurate again
After the break, AZ played a lot more convincingly. The football played at a higher pace and more in Legia’s half. As a result, it also forced a nice opening goal. Dani de Wit neatly headed back from a cross from the left after which Pavlidis came in front of his man and only had to put his foot on the ball: 1-0. It was the starting signal to go over it, because AZ played opportunistically and saw Jordy Clasie’s long shot go just wide.
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Although AZ had complete control of the match, Lahdo made it unnecessarily exciting with a stupid foul. The Swedish right winger kicked in the face of Yuri Ribeiro after which he had to leave the field with an immediate red card. Despite the red card, AZ held on in the match. Although it was no longer dangerous, it also kept Legia far enough away from their own goal. In the final phase, the Poles still had a number of opportunities from standard situations and crosses, but this did not lead to great opportunities.
AZ setup: Ryan; Sugawara, Goes, Penetra, Moller Wolfe (Martins Indi/81); Clasie, Mijnans (Sadiq/81), D. De Wit; Lahdo, Pavlidis, Van Brederode (Kasius/74)