The Club of the People: Feyenoord Rotterdam

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06 December 2017

Point Sends Feyenoord Through To Last 16

Feyenoord secured their place in the Round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League as they secured the point they needed to against Spanish club Athletic Club Bilbao. Feyenoord headed into the game knowing that if they avoided defeat at De Kuip they would have done enough to progress into the last 16 of Europe’s most prestigious club competition and upon the final whistle the Feyenoord fans celebrated like they did when they won the Eredivisie title back in May. Top spot was never up for grabs in the group because of Shakhtar’s superior head to head record against the Dutch side but it didn’t matter to Giovanni van Bronckhorst and his men as they did exactly what they needed to, to ensure they are in the hat for Monday’s draw.

The game was played out at a tight and tense tempo during the first half with neither side really creating much as they both wanted to avoid losing the game and their place in the next round. However in the second half the game came alive as Raul Garcia opened the scoring in the 49th minute after a great piece of counter attacking play from the Spaniards saw Inaki Williams drill the ball into the penalty area and attacking midfielder Raul Garcia slotting home to open the scoring. However Feyenoord were determined not to give up on their hopes of qualifying as Feyenoord put together a slick passing move before Austrian midfielder Louis Schaub slipped Sebastien Haller through on goal with the on form French forward dinking the ball past Athletic Club goalkeeper Kepa to make it 1-1. Athletic Club though knew they needed to win the tie to secure their progression and when in the 61st minute Benat thumped a free kick past Kenneth Vermeer, it looked as though Ernesto Valverde’s side would be taking their place in the Round of 16. Nicolai Jorgensen and Louis Schaub had other ideas though when in the 65th minute, the Austrian number 10 reignited Feyenoord’s Champions League dreams by finding Nicolai Jorgensen in the penalty area with the Dane taking a touch before lashing a vicious effort past Kepa to level the scores and send the Feyenoord fans into raptures as they secured their place in the Round of 16.

Speaking to the media after the game, Giovanni van Bronckhorst said he was thrilled by his team’s performances in the Champions League this season and said they feared nobody going into Monday’s draw for the last 16. ”We’ve done brilliantly to secure a place in the last 16. We’ve put some very good performances in both tonight and across the six games and it has been enough to qualify. We would have liked to have won games like this one or the first game in Spain but it hasn’t happened like that but we have still secured what was a slight dream ahead of the campaign. Going into Monday’s draw though we will fear nobody. We are going to be the underdogs in any tie we get and we can’t wait to find out who is next for us.”

Feyenoord: K Vermeer, B Nieuwkoop, S van Beek, M Knoester (M Miazga, 70), L Woudenberg, T Vilhena (M Vejinovic, 70), S Gustafson, E Elia, L Schaub, N Jorgensen (R Fernandes, 87), S Haller
Athletic Club: Kepa Arrizabalaga, O de Marcos, X Etxeita (S Santamaria, 66), A Laporte, M Balenziaga, Benat, A Iturraspe (D Garcia, 45), I Lekue (A Aketxe, 59), R Garcia, I Williams, A Aduriz

First Knockout Round Draw

The draw for the Round of 16 of the Champions League takes place next Monday, on December 11th at 11:00 GMT at UEFA Headquarters in Nyon. Of the two sides qualified in Group H, Shakhtar Donetsk will be able to play any of the 7 sides that finished in 2nd position in Groups A-G, whilst Feyenoord will also be able to meet any of the teams that won Groups A-G. The full seedings can be found below.

Comments

Justice: Yeah Rashaan could well be a huge player for us especially with Eljero Elia getting older he could be a like for like replacement. He’s going to be more and more involved in the first team this season and next and it’s going to be exciting to see what he can achieve.

In to the next round you go! The seeded teams all look formidable, but Feyenoord cannot be underestimated either!

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11 December 2017

Feyenoord To Meet Monaco In Last 16

The draw for the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League was made today at UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland with the Eredivisie still being represented in the competition by it’s current reigning Champions. Having finished in second place in Group H of the competition, Feyenoord were amongst the 8 unseeded sides left in the competition meaning they would be drawn against one of the group winners that wasn’t Shakhtar Donetsk. The draw threw up an extremely intriguing prospect for Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side as they will welcome AS Monaco to De Kuip in February as the competition resumes after its winter break.

The first leg of the tie will be played at De Kuip on Tuesday 20th February, with the return leg being played at the Stade Louis II on Wednesday 14th March. This season’s competition is the first time that Feyenoord have progressed past the Group Stage since the 1999/2000 season. Monaco currently sit in 3rd position in Ligue 1 which has reached it’s halfway point, just four points behind current leaders Olympique Lyonnais and Leonardo Jardim’s exciting side look set to return to the competition next season at the very least.

Speaking to Eredvisie.nl after he received news of Feyenoord’s draw in the Round of 16, ahead of his teams meeting with AZ Alkmaar in the KNVB Beker on Wednesday, Giovanni van Bronckhorst said he was excited by the prospect of meeting Leonardo Jardim’s side. ”Leonardo and his Monaco side are a very exciting team. They have a lot of attacking players and a lot of young players and are similar to us in style of play and it should make for two very entertaining games and a really entertaining prospect for the fans and the neutrals.”

Comments

Justice: We need not fear anyone but they should certainly fear us

Out of the one's you could face, maybe Monaco is the 'weakest'. Although, to win the trophy you need to beat everybody. Looking forward to your knock-out run!

I'd call that a good draw for Feyenoord, in comparison to what could have been! Will be a challenge, but one I'm sure you're relishing the prospect of!

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13 December 2017

Sebastien Haller Seals Quarter Final Place For Feyenoord

Feyenoord secured their place in the Quarter Finals of the KNVB Beker for the third time under Giovanni van Bronckhorst by overcoming one of their rivals for the trophy in AZ Alkmaar. Goals from Matt Miazga, Eljero Elia and hot property Sebastien Haller were enough to seal the win for Feyenoord as they were backed by thousands of Legion supporters and it was a victory that was very much deserved on the balance of play at De Kuip. Giovanni van Bronckhorst named a stronger side in the competition than he had done in the earlier rounds and now the manager will have a Quarter Final to look forward to with the draw being made tomorrow.

It took only two minutes for the home side to take the lead as their blistering domestic form continued as Marko Vejinovic’s cross was headed across goal by Eljero Elia with on loan American Matt Miazga pouncing first to smash the ball into the goal for 1-0. Some fancy footwork from Eljero Elia then allowed the Dutch winger to double Feyenoord’s lead as he received Simon Gustafson’s pass before his mazy run saw him find himself free in the penalty area and in plenty of space to smash past the AZ goalkeeper for 2-0. Ten minutes later in the 66th minute leading goalscorer Sebastien Haller was played through on goal by Nicolai Jorgensen who has established himself as a dependable left winger this season with the French forward making no mistake in slotting home for 3-0. There was only one stain on Feyenoord’s record when in the 81st minute Hernan Barcos was left unmarked at the back post and the Argentine forward was able to slot home to reduce the deficit to just 3-1. It was further evidence to Feyenoord’s often poor defending from set pieces but with Feyenoord flying in all competitions, it will be an area that van Bronckhorst will perhaps be slightly more willing to forgive. However despite conceding Feyenoord on the night cruised through to the Quarter Finals of the competition as they look to go at least one better than last season’s Semi Final finish.

Speaking to the media after the game Giovanni van Bronckhorst said ”I am delighted tonight to have secured a place in the Quarter Finals of this competition once again. We were disappointed to crash out in the Semi Finals last season so this year we want to go one better and go on to try and win the competition again. We are playing at a very high level at the minute and we are excited by our chances of winning silverware this season both in this competition and in the league.”



De Magere: Yeah you might be right mate but I don’t think it will be anything but difficult. You are definitely right though that you need to beat everyone so here goes

Justice: Yeah was a huge sigh of relief, but I’m just looking forward to the games and giving it a shot at reaching the Quarter Finals

Another strong performance at De Kuip! You can now look forward to the latter stages of the competition, and competing on all fronts is nothing but good for the club!

Great to see you squeeze through in the Champions League, that group was very difficult too, but also make progression in the De Kuip, this season looks very promising for you once again.

Comments

Justice: De Kuip is very fast becoming a fortress and we rarely put in a bad shift there. A domestic double is definitely on the cards!
ScottT: Yeah it was tight but fortunately we made it through, although on the whole I think we did deserve to be playing knockout football more than the others. Progression in the cup is great and the scent of silverware is starting to get stronger and stronger!

A long overdue mid-season break can now be enjoyed! You've put yourself in an excellent position in each and every competition, and now you can use this holiday for some R&R and to refocus on the challenges ahead!

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11 January 2018

Tonny Vilhena Set For Hertha Transfer

Hertha BSC have today confirmed that Feyenoord midfielder Tonny Vilhena will join the Olympiastadion club on July 1st when his contract at reigning Eredivisie Champions Feyenoord expires. Vilhena is believed to have wanted to leave Feyenoord for well over a year, since the January transfer window last season and was on the verge of joining Hertha’s fellow Bundesliga club FC Cologne during the previous summer transfer window for a fee of around £13.5 million but the deal fell through after Vilhena picked up an injury during a pre-season friendly.

Vilhena broke his foot during Feyenoord’s pre-season training in the Summer of 2017 and missed a large chunk of the first half of the Eredivisie season but has since returned from the injury and has gone on to make 13 appearances in all competitions this season. Vilhena though has failed to score a single goal since returning from injury amid fears at the Eredivisie club that Vilhena has lost a little of the spark that made him a high potential player since his return from injury. There is a growing feeling in Holland though that Feyenoord may regret allowing Vilhena to leave on a free transfer and not cashing in on the player when they had the chance.

After his club confirmed Vilhena’s transfer to the Bundesliga, Vilhena said he was looking forward to working with Pal Dardai and his side. ”Hertha are a huge club in a great league with a very good manager that I am very much looking forward to working with. It was no secret that I wanted to leave Feyenoord last summer and unfortunately that chance was taken away from me but today I am on the verge of a brand new start in an exciting league.”

Comments

Justice: If there was ever a time where these players deserved a rest this is it! A phenomenal start to the season and a huge second half of the campaign to come. Hopefully there will be some new faces lining up for us too when the season resumes.

Damn, losing such a player on a free transfer will hurt! He's a player that could have brought in a very significant seven figure fee, but I'm sure you'll find a way to make the best out of this situation!

That is a tough one to swallow. Still can't see why you want to leave a R16 CL club for a mid-table (?) side in Germany!

Hopefully you got a joker up your sleeve to replace him.

That's a huge loss for you, however I think you'll be able to replace him. Losing out on £13M must be very hard to take though.

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24 January 2018

Bilal Basacikoglu Sends Feyenorod Through To Semis

Goals from Matt Miazga and Bilal Basacikoglu were enough to send Feyenoord into the semi finals of the KNVB Beker against Jupiler League opposition Achilles ’29. The hosts who sit in 17th in the Jupiler League as it stands will be disappointed that they were unable to spark a comeback having scored once but Feyenoord’s defence stayed strong despite the minor setback. Jens Toornstra continued to be absent from Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s squad as speculation surrounding a potential transfer to FC Porto continues to circulate. The result means that Feyenoord have taken another huge step towards a potential double as they now face just one more game before they will have the chance to win the KNVB Beker at the Amsterdam Arena on April 29th.

The opening goal of the game came just 7 minutes into the tie as Louis Schaub’s free kick was deflected off the Achilles ’29 wall, with the loose ball falling to Matt Miazga, with the on loan defender smashing home to give Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side a 1-0 lead. As a brave and spirited performance from Achilles ’29 saw them push forward for an equaliser, Feyenoord took their chance to catch their hosts on the break as a long ball forward found Sebastien Haller who slipped the ball into Bilal Basacikoglu with the Turkish winger running into the penalty area and smashing the ball into the roof of the net to seemingly put the game beyond doubt. Feyenoord then took their foot off the pedals and in the 85th minute were caught napping as Brian Boogers was allowed to drift free in the area and slot home to make it 2-1 and give Achilles ’29 a glimpse of hope of a comeback. However despite the hosts pressing for an equaliser to mark a dramatic comeback, Feyenoord’s defence held strong and the current Eredivisie Champions were able to celebrate a place in the Semi Finals of the KNVB Beker.

Speaking to Feyenoord.nl after the game, Giovanni van Bronckhorst said he was thrilled that his side had done enough to get over the line. ”We’re into the Semi Finals again and now within touching distance of another Final. We need to make sure we are professional, like we were tonight, and get ourselves into the Final because we want to win as much silverware as possible this season and this is one of the most important trophies for us this year.”

Comments

Justice: Yeah it was frustrating when Hertha made an offer and he rejected our contract offers for him to stay but I have known he wanted to leave since the summer so I was expecting it. His injury meant we got him for this season at least so every cloud.

De Magere: Very tough! The money is clearly better in Germany. There is however a silver lining in that Hertha are fighting relegation atm so he could well be playing 2. Bundesliga football next season.

ScottT: Yeah I think losing out on that ‘huge’ (for the Eredivisie anyway) transfer fee is more tough to take than losing the player. We essentially replaced him in the summer with Schaub so we have a ready made replacement already here so missing out on that extra revenue will be the biggest loss.