Joey Veerman and Fodé Fofana will make their basic debut for PSV on Thursday during the cup match against Telstar, which kicks off at 6.45 pm. Trainer Roger Schmidt chooses to give Cody Gakpo a rest in the run-up to the top match against Ajax, which is scheduled for next Sunday. At the same time, Eran Zahavi, who has recovered from a knee injury, is back in the squad for the first time since November.
Schmidt has decided not to change keeper, which means that Joël Drommel is ‘just’ preferred over Yvon Mvogo. In defence, Philipp Max has a base place for the first time since November. The German wing defender contracted a corona infection and since then Schmidt normally prefers Mauro Júnior at left back. Max forms the defense along with Armando Obispo, Olivier Boscagli and Phillipp Mwene.
In midfield there is for the first time a base place for Veerman, who was taken over from sc Heerenveen, who made his debut for PSV last Sunday in the game against FC Groningen (0-1 win). Veerman forms a couple with Érick Gutiérrez, while Bruma and captain Mario Götze are the attacking midfielders. Strikingly enough, Schmidt chooses to give Gakpo and Götze no rest with a view to the upcoming duel with Ajax.
Because Gakpo has no base place, the PSV attacking duo consists of Yorbe Vertessen and Fofana. Nineteen-year-old Fofana did not have a happy first half of the season due to injuries, but was already part of the match selection of PSV’s main squad last weekend. Now Fofana will play his second game in the first team of Eindhoven, after he came on as a substitute earlier this season during the game with FC Midtjylland (0-1 win) in the preliminary round of the Champions League.
PSV line-up: drum; Mwene, Obispo, Boscagli, Max; Gutierrez, Veerman; Bruma, Gotze; Vertessen and Fofana.
Telstar setup: Koeman; Miller, Aktas, Tugarinov; Dijkstra, Zakir, Van Doorm, Fernandes, Kökcu; Plet and Van Velzen.