PSV took over the lead in the Eredivisie from Ajax on Saturday evening. Roger Schmidt’s team appeared battered at the kick-off, but had few problems with Vitesse in the empty Philips Stadium. The Arnhem team were set aside before halftime with wonderful goals from Ibrahim Sangaré and Bruma: 2-0. Ajax can take over the first place on goal difference from PSV on Sunday by winning at RKC Waalwijk, while Vitesse remains fifth.
Schmidt had to improvise again due to the many absentees in order to form a starting eleven. For example, Mauro Júnior started in left back position as a replacement for the corona-infected Philipp Max, while Ritsu Doan and Bruma replaced the still absent wing tips Cody Gakpo and Noni Madueke. Carlos Vinicius was the lone striker in the absence of the injured Eran Zahavi. Vitesse has absolutely no injury problems and started in the same formation as two weeks ago against FC Utrecht (2-1 victory).
Ibrahim Sangaré puts PSV ahead with this wonderful volley ??
?? ESPN
#?? #psvvit pic.twitter.com/JEYNWtN3ys— ESPN NL (@ESPNnl) Nov 20, 2021
The first threatening moment in the match came from Vitesse. In the fourth minute, Loïs Openda rushed past André Ramalho, after which Nikolai Frederiksen’s shot was saved by Joël Drommel. PSV then firmly took the initiative and used Vinícius as a point of reference. The Brazilian laid the heel for Mario Götze, who produced a weak shot with the left.
A quick breakout after a conquest of the ball gave PSV the opening goal after nineteen minutes. Vitesse defender Jacob Rasmussen thought he could clear a pass from Mauro, but played the ball straight into Sangaré’s feet. He checked and shot beautifully from eighteen meters: 1-0. After half an hour of play, the Eindhoven team’s second goal followed. Vinícius put the ball with his head ready for Bruma, who suddenly shot the ball out of the air into the intersection: 2-0.
What a great attack from PSV! Now it’s Bruma with the volley ?? pic.twitter.com/d1BUZLd8Ur
— ESPN NL (@ESPNnl) Nov 20, 2021
That also turned out to be the halftime score, because the remainder of the first half yielded little. Vitesse started the second quite well and forced Drommel to make two saves early on. First, the PSV goalkeeper intervened on a shot from the edge of the Openda penalty area, then he stopped Bero from scoring a goal with a fairly simple intervention. PSV then showed themselves in the person of Götze, who came in from the left and hit the post with a low shot. Maximiliano Romero thought to draw 3-0 in the final phase, but the substitute was called back due to Götze’s offside.
| No. | Team | m | W | G | V | +/- | Pnt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | PSV | 13 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 13 | 30 |
| 2 | Ajax | 12 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 35 | 27 |
| 3 | Feyenoord | 11 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 14 | 25 |
| 4 | FC Utrecht | 12 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 13 | 23 |
| 5 | Vitesse | 13 | 7 | 1 | 5 | -7 | 22 |
| 6 | FC Twente | 12 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 18 |
| 7 | NEC | 12 | 5 | 3 | 4 | -2 | 18 |
| 8 | SC Cambuur | 12 | 6 | 0 | 6 | -5 | 18 |
| 9 | William II | 12 | 5 | 3 | 4 | -5 | 18 |
| 10 | Go Ahead Eagles | 12 | 5 | 2 | 5 | -5 | 17 |
| 11 | AZ | 11 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 15 |
| 12 | sc Heerenveen | 12 | 4 | 2 | 6 | -5 | 14 |
| 13 | Heracles Almelo | 11 | 3 | 2 | 6 | -5 | 11 |
| 14 | RKC Waalwijk | 12 | 2 | 5 | 5 | -3 | 11 |
| 15 | Fc Groningen | 12 | 2 | 5 | 5 | -8 | 11 |
| 16 | Sparta Rotterdam | 12 | 2 | 4 | 6 | -8 | 10 |
| 17 | Fortuna Sittard | 11 | 2 | 3 | 6 | -12 | 9 |
| 18 | PEC Zwolle | 12 | 1 | 1 | 10 | -15 | 4 |