Sunday, October 2, 2022 at 2:21 PM• Paul Jeursen • Last update: 14:32

Fortuna Sittard has booked the second victory of the season in the Eredivisie. In a direct relegation duel, Julio Velázquez’s team won 2-0 against FC Volendam at home. Basic debutant Úmaro Embaló made his first goal in Limburg service and Oguzhan Özyakup took care of the other half of the production. Bilal Ould-Chikh saw a red card just before half-time after a hard charge. Due to the win, Fortuna makes a jump in the ranking and is in fourteenth place. Volendam, which is now five games in a row without a win, is penultimate.

The last time Fortuna Sittard – FC Volendam was played in the Eredivisie was in December 1997. Then Fortuna won 3-0. The omens for the meeting with Volendam seemed positive: Fortuna’s last three clean sheets were all made against promoted teams. Each time, the Limburgers won 1-0. There was also a remarkable scoop to report: Fortuna appeared at the kick-off without the Dutch. Although Deroy Duarte was born in the Netherlands, he plays his international matches for Cape Verde. It was the first time in the history of the Eredivisie that no Dutchman appeared at the kick-off on behalf of an Eredivisie club.

In the first half it was one-way traffic in Sittard. Burak soon thought he could charge in after a cross from Özyakup, but his bet went over. The home team pushed hard and continuously benefited from the many loss of ball that Volendam suffered. However, shots from Yilmaz, Arianit Ferati, George Cox missed the target. Volendam keeper Filip Stankovic was also in the way. The staggeringly weak playing Volendam barely created anything. After half an hour of play it was Embaló who graced his basic debut with a beautiful goal. After a rejected cross, he took out from about 25 meters. His effort fell perfectly in the far top left corner: 1-0.

Five minutes later, Ould-Chikh was able to take a shower. The attacker planted his studs in Cox’s knee after the ball was long gone. Dennis Higler was called to the side by the VAR and could do nothing but show Ould-Chikh the red card. Just before half time, Fortuna then dealt the final blow when Özyakup completed the 2-0 after a nice assist from Ivo Pinto.

After the break, the game was more or less the same as in the first act. Almost immediately, Volendam’s loss of ball led to danger and Embaló almost scored his second goal. The home team insisted, but this did not lead to really great opportunities. Yilmaz did put away Iñigo Córdoba with a nice pass. The Spaniard’s shot landed on the crossbar via Stankovic. In the final phase Fortuna thought he would get a penalty kick and Yilmaz was ready to unwrap the gift. However, the foul was made outside the box.