For a long time, FC Emmen seemed to be heading for a victory in Eindhoven on Friday evening, but in the absolute final phase the team still gave up. A wonderful goal proved insufficient.
They would be on the right track again, in the opposite direction of the rather painful defeat against leader Willem II. Trainer Fred Grim said it with full conviction. On the artificial grass of FC Eindhoven, where FC Emmen was crowned champion of the first division two seasons ago, the Drenthe team was not allowed to make another mistake. For a long time, FC Emmen seemed to succeed, but in the absolute final phase things went wrong. More about that later.
Early lead
The evening started with a surprise: Desley Ubbink and Michaël Heylen were absent. The two experienced players were injured in the run-up to the match. A big setback for Grim’s team, because both were almost always part of the starting line-up this season. The trainer chose to move Mike te Wierik to the heart of the defense, starting with Robin Schouten as right back and also giving Ben Scholte a starting place again, as right winger.
As expected, FC Emmen in Eindhoven took control immediately after the first whistle. The home team, playing with a defense consisting of five, clearly left control to the Drenthes and tried to use the counterattack with fast forward players. But it was FC Emmen that struck first after just 7 minutes. Jari Vlak served Piotr Parzyszek, who quickly turned around and pushed the ball with his left into the right corner past goalkeeper Jorn Brondeel.
FC Emmen played freshly, eagerly, and indeed seemed to do everything in their power to forget that defeat against Willem II. But while Grim’s team pushed for a second goal, FC Eindhoven scored the equalizer, somewhat against the odds. Ozan Kökcü, the brother of former Feyenoord player Orkun Kökcü, was the culprit for FC Emmen. In fact, in the Emmer sixteen-meter area, the attacking midfielder was given far too much space to head the ball past goalkeeper Jan Hoekstra.
Tiki-taka combination
The supporters who traveled along undoubtedly did not regret their trip to North Brabant at that stage, because a very entertaining match developed. Several Emmen residents stood out, such as Ahmed El Messaoudi, the agile pivot in the attack, and Jari Vlak, the driven putter in midfield. Partly because of them, FC Emmen played attractive football at times. The goal that would give the team the lead seemed only a matter of time.
Grim saw with great pleasure on the sidelines that the goal would come in the first half. Via an eye-catching tiki-taka combination between Lucas Bernadou, Rui Mendes and El Messaoudi – one of Barcelona’s allure – the latter shot the ball into the right corner past Brondeel. The goal pushed the slip-ups of Julius Dirksen, among others, from moments before into oblivion. It would not have made much difference if FC Eindhoven had been the team that took the lead.
Historically, FC Emmen often has a difficult time in the Jan Louwers Stadium. Of the 37 games prior to last night, the team only managed to win eight. Twelve times it ended in a draw and seventeen times FC Eindhoven took the full spoils. FC Emmen also had it anything but easy in the second half. The home team pressed and had chances through David Garden, Sven Simons and Luuk Wouters, among others. Partly thanks to an excellent Hoekstra, the lead remained intact.
Crazy final phase
A crazy final phase turned the match upside down. While FC Emmen slowly became rich with a number of defensive changes, FC Eindhoven struck twice through Mawouna Amevor and again Kökcü. The Emmen team was very dismayed, as they lost three very expensive points. And that in the knowledge that they could have done good business, because competitors Willem II and ADO Den Haag played a draw. All in all a sour aftertaste.