Saturday, November 20, 2021 at 10:02 PM• Daniel Cabot Kerkdijk • Last update: 22:09

The meeting between AZ and NEC on Saturday evening in the Eredivisie ended in a draw: 1-1. The game was temporarily halted in the seventeenth minute when supporters of the home team burst into the stadium. A few people also entered the field, but the majority remained behind the boarding. The match resumed minutes after the incident. Jordy Bruin had already shot NEC ahead at that time. AZ pulled a point out of the fire in the final seconds thanks to Zakaria Aboukhlal, who thus prevented the seventh league defeat this season.

AZ started with the same eleven names as two weeks ago during the lost Eredivisie match with Feyenoord (1-0). For the visitors, the injured Elayis Tavsan was replaced by Magnus Mattsson. It was NEC that immediately converted the first chance into a goal after just under ten minutes of play. Ali Alkman missed the ball completely from edge sixteen, after which Bruno Martins Indi unfortunately gave the ball to Bruin. The midfielder was outlaw and could easily tap in from about ten meters: 0-1. The home team wanted to put things in order right away, but Albert Gudmundsson saw his shot turned by goalkeeper Mattijs Branderhorst.

A group of supporters manage to get in and shout ‘Alkmaar hooligans!’ A few even climb over the boarding and run across the field. Referee Manschot stops the game. #aznec #necnijmegen pic.twitter.com/sLS6zqSDVu

— Jeroen Bijma (@JeroenBijma) Nov 20, 2021

Referee Jeroen Manschot decided to temporarily stop the game after more than fifteen minutes of play, because AZ supporters invaded the AFAS Stadium. The fans first threw fireworks through the gate, after which some stewards had to take cover. Some intruders also entered the field, the rest stayed behind the boarding. Within a minute, the burglars decided to leave again, after which the game could be resumed. The team of trainer Pascal Jansen came out of the short interruption strong. Vangelis Pavlidis was close to equalizing, but saw his shot hit the post from a promising position. Just before half time, Jesper Karlsson and Gudmunsson tried again with shots from distance. Branderhorst again managed to distinguish himself with two saves.

The supporters soon leave the stadium, after which Manschot resumes the match. The security people gather at the gate to discuss how to proceed. #aznec #necnijmegen pic.twitter.com/EUykYFf0c9

— Jeroen Bijma (@JeroenBijma) Nov 20, 2021

While AZ’s equalizer hung in the air before half-time, the match continued for a long time after half-time. The home side were no longer able to create chance for chance, allowing NEC to get more into the game. With an hour on the clock, the visitors even seemed to double the margin. Bruijn sent Jonathan Okita into the depths, who shot the ball past Peter Vindahl who had come out. However, the attacker was in an offside position, so that AZ remained in the game. Jansen tried to change the game halfway through the second half by replacing Gudmundsson and Fredrik Midtsjö for Hakon Evjen and Tijjani Reijnders.

Fifteen minutes before the end Okita still got the chance to close the game. This time the attacker was sent into the depths by Dirk Proper, but the ball narrowly missed the post. The Alkmaarders subsequently asserted themselves again. Martins Indi had a great opportunity to bring AZ alongside. However, the defender headed a corner just wide. In the final seconds, the home team still managed to get a point from the fire, when Aboukhlal headed in the 1-1 on Evjen’s pass. Due to the draw, NEC is in seventh place with 19 points from 13 matches. AZ is eleventh with sixteen points from twelve matches.