The two goals that PSV scored last week against Stade Brest and SC Heerenveen caused a lot of chagrin among Willy and René van de Kerkhof. The two club stars had expected on Saturday that PSV would take sporting revenge for the defeat in France in Friesland, but they saw the opposite happen. “I have never seen Boscagcli, Flamingo and Karsdorp play so poorly,” Willy grumbles. “That ball wide from Flamingo from which the goal came should never happen, right?”
But there is also a bright spot, as the brothers note in the Willy and René Podcast of Omroep Brabant. “Feyenoord is the ideal opponent to put something right,” said Willy. “Top matches are wonderful to play, you don’t have to motivate players for this.” And according to René, they provide some extra motivation in Rotterdam. “They say there that they are now also going to take PSV. That’s nice that a team that says that gets its own blow.”
“No damn sissies!”
René hopes that trainer Peter Bosz will be a little less concerned about the PSV medical staff. He doesn’t like the fact that Noa Lang and Johan Bakayoko were sidelined against Heerenveen on the advice of the medical supervisors. “Those boys just wanted to play and are then stopped by the coach because they play too many matches. Is that more important than the result? They’re not damn sissies!” Willy sees it a bit differently. “The influence of the medical staff is great these days. Those players have to stay fit.”
For example, soon in the new year there will be two matches in the Champions League, which have only become more important due to the defeat against Brest. “I have a hard time about it, to be honest,” says René. “I don’t want to say that PSV won’t make it, but… well, PSV won’t make it. I’ve seen Red Star a few times, we can get our hopes up.” Here too, Willy provides a counterpoint. “I assume we will get four more points and just keep going.”
“Strapped by a First Divisionist.”
The first assignment for PSV is a cup game at home against Royal HFC on Tuesday evening. The brothers know from their own experience that you also have to take cup matches against a small opponent seriously. “That match against Wageningen? I can’t remember that,” Willy laughs. PSV was also the leader in the Eredivisie at the end of 1977 and lost 6-1 at home to Wageningen, a low-flyer in the first division.
The brothers prefer to be reminded of their own matches against the Royal HFC on New Year’s Day with the former internationals. “That was delicious food and drinks and a game of football in between,” the brothers laugh. In the podcast, René discusses the referees from last weekend and explains why it is a good thing that he never became chairman of PSV.
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