Kenneth Perez believes that Orkun Kökçü fell through the basket during the match between AZ and Feyenoord (2-1). The analyst states in the program This was the Weekend from ESPN that the duel was in a sense a test for the 21-year-old midfielder of Feyenoord. Perez believes that Kökçü failed this test.
“You could see under a certain pressure who has a high speed of action and who does not,” Perez begins. “A number of players came forward of whom you thought: yes, they do have quality. But also players of whom you thought: it’s all fun against RKC and so on. This was the pace with which you can also be confronted in Europe and a number of players fell through.”
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Presenter Milan van Dongen asks who the analyst is most shocked by. “Kökçü, maybe,” Perez replies. “Because people have praised him so much after four goals in five games. But yes, against the lesser gods. But today: thirty times loss of the ball… That is not allowed. For his development, this should be a match where you say: ‘Kökçü, did you see that? He was the director in midfield, he took good free kicks and corners. But he didn’t. These are competitions to do that.”
The tandem Bryan Linssen-Guus Til could not appeal to Perez either. ‘Out of shape’, he concludes. “It’s always difficult for Til in the small space, but he’s getting too involved in the game now. He should really leave alone. Linssen works very hard, but almost nothing comes out.” Perez and fellow analyst Mario Been were pleased with Gernot Trauner’s performance in Alkmaar.
“I’ve been watching him and he hasn’t done anything wrong. No stupid things, no violations, building up well, standing well, constantly playing the right color: those are the things that are very decisive. He really is a man putter”, says Been. Perez adds: “It’s experience and insight. He’s really not a special player, you don’t go to the stadium for Trauner. But he struck me in the unrest that there was, because he was just so calm.”