AZ has approached leader Feyenoord to two points. The Alkmaarders won on Saturday evening at home thanks to a wonderful goal by Jesper Karlsson 1-0 against low flyer FC Groningen. An excellent generale for Thursday’s return match against Lazio in the eighth final of the Conference League. Feyenoord can take a five-point lead again on Sunday, provided that FC Volendam is beaten.
Compared to Tuesday’s surprising 1-2 victory over Lazio, there was only one change in the starting line-up at AZ. Fedde de Jong made his basic debut as a right back, replacing the suspended Yukinari Sugawara. Furthermore, trainer Pascal Jansen opted for only trusted names with the home team. On the side of the visitors from Groningen, Laros Duarte and Thom van Bergen appeared at the kick-off. Daleho Irandust was missing due to an injury and Isak Määttä was suspended after his much-discussed red card last week in the 1-0 loss against Feyenoord. Jetro Willems and Elvis Manu once again got Dennis van der Ree’s confidence.
A flare from Jesper Karlsson! ??#azgro pic.twitter.com/yoB9f5pasg
— ESPN NL (@ESPNnl) March 11, 2023
The start could not have been better for AZ. Karlsson received the ball on the left and half of Groningen and started an action towards the sixteen. The Swede got rid of Liam van Gelderen, turned again and then left goalkeeper Michael Verrips completely without a chance with a hard blast from a distance: 1-0. It was Karlsson’s fifth goal of this Eredivisie season. AZ got the hang of it and it was Sven Mijnans who was too wild shortly afterwards and shot wide after a nice heel from Milos Kerkez. Groningen recovered somewhat and it was Manu who was unlucky after twenty minutes when his effort via goalkeeper Mathew Ryan ended up on the outside of the post. AZ showed little more after Karlsson’s tour de force, but did lead 1-0 at halftime, thanks in part to a nice save by Ryan on a blast by Tomas Suslov.
AZ did not convince after the break either. Few chances were wasted on Jens Odgaard and Vangelis Pavlidis. Jansen intervened halfway through the second half and took De Jong, Kerkez and Odgaard to the side with a view to Lazio at home. The fit Sam Beukema, Mees de Wit and Djordje Mihailovic were the fresh forces. Mijnans was still close to 2-0, but after a smooth counter he encountered Verrips. Florian Krüger, who came on for the tired Manu, was already close to the equalizer, but Groningen did not get any further than his attempt in the final phase. The somewhat disappointing AZ held out and can now focus on Lazio’s visit to Alkmaar.
| No. | Team | m | W | G | v | +/- | Pnt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Feyenoord | 24 | 16 | 7 | 1 | 32 | 55 |
| 2 | AZ | 25 | 16 | 5 | 4 | 23 | 53 |
| 3 | Ajax | 24 | 15 | 7 | 2 | 43 | 52 |
| 4 | PSV | 24 | 15 | 4 | 5 | 33 | 49 |
| 5 | FC Twente | 25 | 12 | 8 | 5 | 21 | 44 |
| 6 | Sparta Rotterdam | 24 | 11 | 7 | 6 | 10 | 40 |
| 7 | FC Utrecht | 24 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 37 |
| 8 | RKC Waalwijk | 24 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 2 | 32 |
| 9 | SC Heerenveen | 24 | 8 | 7 | 9 | -5 | 31 |
| 10 | NEC | 24 | 6 | 12 | 6 | 7 | 30 |
| 11 | Fortuna Sittard | 25 | 8 | 5 | 12 | -13 | 29 |
| 12 | Go Ahead Eagles | 24 | 6 | 8 | 10 | -9 | 26 |
| 13 | Vitesse | 24 | 5 | 8 | 11 | -14 | 23 |
| 14 | FC Volendam | 24 | 6 | 5 | 13 | -25 | 23 |
| 15 | FC Emmen | 25 | 4 | 9 | 12 | -20 | 21 |
| 16 | Excelsior | 25 | 6 | 2 | 17 | -39 | 20 |
| 17 | Fc Groningen | 25 | 4 | 5 | 16 | -25 | 17 |
| 18 | SC Cambuur | 24 | 4 | 4 | 16 | -23 | 16 |
Date:Saturday March 11, 2023, 8:00 PM
Stadium:AFAS Stadium (Alkmaar)
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