FC Utrecht booked a victory against Heracles Almelo in the Eredivisie on Sunday afternoon in the absolute final phase. Simon Gustafson missed a penalty just before the break and in the second half, coach René Hake’s team left several great opportunities unused. It was ultimately not fatal for the home team, because through an own goal by Mats Knoester in the 93rd minute, the three points remained in the Dom city.
At FC Utrecht there was a surprising starting place for Remco Balk. The winger kicked off for the first time since his arrival to the Domstad in the Eredivisie. The initial phase of the match was mainly dominated by scanning. The first pinprick of the match was eventually handed out by Heracles Almelo. Lucas Schoofs tried with a shot from a distance, but found goalkeeper Maarten Paes in his way. Then the home team also asserted itself. Simon Gustafson, however, missed a serious opportunity.
The game then played out in midfield for a long time. Five minutes before half time, FC Utrecht suddenly had the perfect opportunity to take the lead, when Balk broke through on the left and was knocked down in the penalty area by Marco Rente. Referee Martin van der Kerkhof had no choice but to put the ball on the spot. Gustafson, however, failed to give the team of trainer Hake the lead from eleven meters. The midfielder slammed into the penalty, enabling Janis Blaswich to save.
FC Utrecht increased the pressure after the break. Balk was first close to the opening goal with a shot on the crossbar, after which Quinten Timber saw the ball saved just before the goal line by Mats Knoester. With the many opportunities for the Domstedelingen, it was a small miracle that it was still 0-0 halfway through the second half. The home team again came out very quickly after an interception by Balk. Anastasios Douvikas gave wide to the following Bart Ramselaar, who shot straight at Blaswich’s hands.
The Utrecht storm subsided after the rain of chances, so that Heracles came into the game a bit more. However, the visitors did not immediately succeed in creating good opportunities. Heracles seemed to be able to pick up a point in Stadium Galgenwaard, but in injury time things still went wrong for the team of trainer Frank Wormuth. Adam Maher hurled the ball into the penalty area, after which Adrián Dalmau headed the ball hard against Knoester’s head. The ball unfortunately fell through the defender behind Blaswich: 1-0.
| No. | Team | m | W | G | V | +/- | Pnt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ajax | 14 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 41 | 33 |
| 2 | PSV | 13 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 13 | 30 |
| 3 | Feyenoord | 13 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 18 | 29 |
| 4 | FC Utrecht | 14 | 8 | 2 | 4 | 13 | 26 |
| 5 | SC Cambuur | 14 | 8 | 0 | 6 | -3 | 24 |
| 6 | Vitesse | 13 | 7 | 1 | 5 | -7 | 22 |
| 7 | FC Twente | 14 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 22 |
| 8 | Go Ahead Eagles | 14 | 6 | 2 | 6 | -5 | 20 |
| 9 | NEC | 14 | 5 | 4 | 5 | -3 | 19 |
| 10 | William II | 14 | 5 | 3 | 6 | -7 | 18 |
| 11 | sc Heerenveen | 13 | 5 | 2 | 6 | -4 | 17 |
| 12 | Fc Groningen | 14 | 4 | 5 | 5 | -4 | 17 |
| 13 | AZ | 12 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 16 |
| 14 | Heracles Almelo | 13 | 4 | 2 | 7 | -4 | 14 |
| 15 | RKC Waalwijk | 14 | 2 | 6 | 6 | -8 | 12 |
| 16 | Sparta Rotterdam | 14 | 2 | 4 | 8 | -10 | 10 |
| 17 | Fortuna Sittard | 13 | 2 | 3 | 8 | -17 | 9 |
| 18 | PEC Zwolle | 14 | 1 | 2 | 11 | -19 | 5 |