Feyenoord gives away a comfortable lead and does not get further than a draw at FC Midtjylland European football

By Mikos Gouka

Juninho’s goal just before time was a moment when the Feyenoord players lowered their heads. Arne Slot took more and more measures in the second half to keep FC Midtylland from the goal, but it turned out to be insufficient to secure the win. Slot realized that a victory on Danish soil could prove crucial in the battle for qualification for the knockout phase of the Europa League. The 2-2 still gives every chance of wintering in Europe, but it could have been so much nicer.

Slot felt the equalizer coming. Lutsharel Geertruida became the lock on the door in midfield and Orkun Kökçü disappeared to the side. Marcus Pedersen had to leave the bench and in the final phase Mats Wieffer also appeared on the scene as a defensive midfielder who saw the wingers Alireza Jahanbakhsh and Patrik Walemark come closer to him to win the game. But no matter how hard Feyenoord fought, FC Midtylland came back at 2-2.

Watch FC Midtjylland’s equalizer below:

And that was a sensitive blow after matches in which Feyenoord had already failed to cross the line against PSV and NEC. The evening had started so positively. With a smile around his mouth, Arne Slot saw referee Mohammed Al-Hakim walk to the screen in the MCH Arena in Herning shortly before half-time. Italy’s Video Assistant Referee (VAR) Michael Fabbri had warned the Swedish referee that Orkun Kökçü had yelled in his ear before.

The free kick of the Turkish international had come on the arm of a player from FC Midtjylland and – in the rebound – resulted in a penalty for the visitors. Kökçü, who this time was not bothered by substitute Santiago Gimenez as in Rome when taking his place behind the ball, expertly took care of the job and shot Feyenoord to 0-2 in the Danish Herning.

Earlier, the same Fabbri had already given a signal when linesman Fredrik Klyver had wrongly found offside, canceling Sebastian Szymanski’s opening goal. After thoroughly studying the images, the Pole was able to celebrate his party for the second time in front of the overcrowded branch.

However, the 0-2 halftime score turned out not to be enough. Slot saw to his horror that first Gustav Isaksen took care of 1-2 and five minutes before the end, Juninho tapped in the 2-2. Feyenoord remains at the top of the rankings, but the margin is still limited with Lazio Roma, FC Midtjylland and Sturm Graz.

Slot had to process even more in Herning. Oussama Idrissi suddenly grabbed the back of his thigh during a sprint and then all the alarm bells go off among the members of the medical staff. The left striker was replaced with a hamstring injury and Alireza Jahanbakhsh was allowed to remove the tracksuit to appear on the field.

On Thursday FC Midtjylland comes to the packed Kuip and Feyenoord can repair the damage. Slot will then have to ensure a less restless course of the match. The game often resembled a pinball machine so quickly the ball changed hands. And defensively, Feyenoord proves to be very generous time and again.

Watch all our videos about the Europa League here.