Substitute Karlsson helps looking for AZ along tough Apollon Limassol

The match was pre-arranged as risk match labeled by Anja Schouten, the mayor of Alkmaar. About a thousand Apollon fans were in the stadium and could be heard loudly well before kick-off, while the rest of the stadium was still empty.

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At AZ, Dani de Wit and Jens Odgaard turned out to be fit enough to start in the base again. The recently recovered Jesper Karlsson started on the bench against the Cypriots. At the Alkmaarders, the occasional striker immediately made itself felt. First with a header that went just over the goal and after fifteen minutes of play he was accurate with a shot that ended up in the far corner via an opponent: 1-0.

Patrick Joosten

Until then, AZ had nothing to fear for Apollon Limassol, but it still saw the visitors come alongside. Patrick Joosten, who played for FC Utrecht, FC Groningen and VVV-Venlo in the past, scored the 1-1 from a cross from the left a few minutes after the opening goal. AZ was visibly upset because in the subsequent phase, number three in Cyprus was the parent and most dangerous team.

AZ started the second half in good spirits and with much more opportunism. That led to a more open game and opportunities for the home team. Despite the fact that there were no real finished opportunities, AZ was helped in the saddle by Apollon. Jens Odgaard went down in the box and Dani de Wit converted the following penalty: 2-1.

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Trainer Pascal Jansen brought in fresh blood with Jesper Karlsson, Mayckel Lahdo and Zinho Vanheusden, but Euclides Cabral saw the visitors level again in the 72nd minute. The right back had come up, nothing was put in the way and shot the 2-2 against the ropes from outside the sixteen. AZ emphatically went looking for the lead and it came in the 85th minute. Substitute Karlsson tapped the 3-2 behind the goalkeeper after an attack over the left.

The win keeps AZ at the top of the group in the Conference League. The Alkmaarders now have nine points from three games. Next Thursday, AZ will visit Apollon Limassol. In between, the leader in the Eredivisie will play against FC Utrecht on Sunday at 2.30 pm.

AZ setup: concealed; Hatzidiakos (Lahdo/64), Beukema, Dekker (Vanheusden/64), Kerkez; Clasie, Reijnders, D. De Wit (Bazoer/81); Sugawara, Odgaard, Van Brederode (Karlsson/64)

Reactions of the match will follow later on NH Sport.