FC Emmen made another painful mistake on Friday evening when they visited Jong PSV. The team of coach Fred Grim did not claim the victory that Drenthe has been longing for for eight games in a row. A place in the play-offs gradually seems to be in jeopardy.
After the match against Jong PSV, people’s faces were stormy. That of Fred Grim, his staff and all the players. No one excepted. Everyone walked off the field with their heads deeply bowed. But not before accountability was given to the supporters who traveled along. Because the match that was thought in advance could change the situation in which the club found itself, against the number sixteen of the first division, was lost. And how.
Fred Grim decided not to change anything in his starting line-up against Jong PSV compared to last week against FC Eindhoven. Then FC Emmen ended a regrettable series of six defeats in a row with a draw. The coach must have thought that you should not compromise on a positive flow. Vicente Besuijen was on the left flank for the second game in a row. The other winter reinforcements, Faris Hammouti and Bradly van Hoeven, started on the bench.
Tactical jousting
But little of the superior power that FC Emmen showed against FC Eindhoven, although not with the desired result, was visible when visiting Jong PSV. Only once did Grim’s team become dangerous. By a header from Piotr Parzyszek, for example, after about twenty minutes of play. It was mainly a tactical jousting match at De Herdgang sports park, with both teams passing the ball around frequently but failing to significantly surprise the opponent.
Uninspirational. This is perhaps the best way to characterize the Emmen team’s play. And lifeless. This was evident again when Jong PSV opened the score after half an hour. Koen Jansen got the ball at his feet through a quick break down the left flank. The Eindhoven team’s left back did not hesitate, took an impeccable shot and saw his ball disappear into the left cross. FC Emmen goalie Jan Hoekstra was not to blame, it was his teammates on the right flank who gave Jansen all the space.
Mentally fragile
The fact that FC Emmen is mentally very fragile this season was once again revealed in Eindhoven. Less than five minutes later, Jong PSV doubled the score. Tygo Land, born and raised in Peize, was presented with the ball at the halfway line, then slalomed, à la Frenkie de Jong, towards the FC Emmen sixteen and pushed the ball past Hoekstra. Another beautiful goal, but the Drenthe player was very easily fooled. Nobody made things difficult for the Country.
Not entirely coincidentally, Grim intervened before half time. The coach took Besuijen aside and brought in Patrick Brouwer. Besuijen, who had to provide the team with the necessary creativity, looked a lot like a statue. The Aberdeen loanee was a bit sick with the flu, the statement said afterwards. But with the ‘new’ right flank, the people of Emmen did not fare much better. Robin Schouten in particular played very unluckily. The right back seemed to be looking for the right back position.
Dear Drent on the field
FC Emmen struggled on in the second half. Hardly for a moment did the Drenthe team look like a play-off worthy candidate. The spaces were simply too big, the interventions too late and the actions had little to do.
Grim tried to turn the game around by introducing Ben Scholte and Joey Konings, among others, but had to watch despondently from the sidelines as Jong PSV easily remained upright. A shot from Scholte grazed the intersection, but to no avail.
In fact, Tygo Land made the situation worse in the final minutes with his second goal of the evening. Face to face with Hoekstra, he calmly pushed the ball into the left corner. In that respect he was the best Drent on the field.
As a result, FC Emmen was also unable to convert its eighth match in a row into a victory. The situation in Drenthe seems to be becoming more worrying by the week. And to think that the team has to visit Roda JC next week, currently number two in the rankings.