Wednesday, March 17, 2021 at 3:55 PM• Rian Rosendaal

The championship in the Eredivisie seems to be a prey for leader Ajax. Behind it, PSV and AZ fight for the coveted second place, which entitles them to a ticket for the preliminary round in the Champions League. Owen Wijndal comes up with ambitious texts prior to the top match against PSV on Sunday. The left back firmly believes that AZ will pass the competitor from Eindhoven in the rankings.

“We come in second”, Wijndal predicts without further ado in an extensive interview with Football International. “I really think so. Last Saturday we showed again how well we can play football against FC Twente (4-1 victory, ed.). With many position changes and a fast pace, we put them with our backs to the wall. things are going well, few teams can withstand us. ” AZ is only three points behind PSV with eight rounds to go. In January, the current number three managed to win somewhat surprisingly 1-3 in the Philips Stadium.

Wijndal is of the opinion that only one team is above AZ in the Netherlands. “Ajax is rightly at the top”, the wing defender concludes with the closing phase of this football year approaching. “They have a wide selection with a lot of quality and that is reflected in their results. We also won them twice, including the cup competition.” Nevertheless, Wijndal is satisfied with the progress that AZ has made under trainer Pascal Jansen. “If you look at the player material of all the top clubs, we come after Ajax. AZ has qualitatively the second selection in the Netherlands. One hundred percent. At the end of the season that should also be reflected in the ranking.”

There seems to be no doubt about the participation of Wijndal against PSV, because the left back, just like captain Teun Koopmeiners, did not miss a minute at AZ this season. “Only when my legs are off I will ask for a change”, he adds with a joke. “But seriously: we are all very fit at AZ. Just like last season. We have a good exercise physiologist, Niels Kok, who plays an important role in this. And you have to be lucky with injuries. Hopefully that fitness will help us. in the last phase of the season “, concludes the hopeful Wijndal.