Heavily rotated AZ team lose 4-3 to Hungarian side Ferencvaros in the Europa League
AZ competed in an entertaining match in Hungary on Thursday. The Alkmaarders lost 4-3 to Ferencvaros in the final match of the UEFA Europa League phase. Sven Mijnans scored twice off the bench to help bring AZ back into the match after they had fallen 3-0 down by halftime.
The match did not have much meaning for AZ as the Alkmaarders were almost certainly assured of a spot in the playoff round but would not be able to reach the top eight to ensure they skipped the next round. With this in mind, manager Maarten Martens rested many of his more valuable players.
Ferencvaros broke the deadlock in the eighth minute. A cross by Adama Traore was headed high into the corner of the goal by Mohamed Ali Ben Romdhane at the far post.
Traore followed up his assist with an absolutely incredible goal in the 33rd minute. The winger from Mali hit an absolute rocket from around 30 yards from goal, which flew in via the underside of the crossbar.
It got worse for Maarten Martens’ side just before halftime. A cross by Mohammad Abu Fani was once again headed into the goal by Ben Romdhane to make it 3-0 going into halftime.
AZ got a goal back with around 15 minutes left to play in the match. Sven Mijnans proved why he is one of AZ’s most important players by coming off the bench to score. The midfielder was found by Kees Smit and he did not hesitate, smashing the ball into the net.
The comeback seemed short-lived, as Ferencvaros was awarded a penalty a few minutes later. Another one of the players rested by Martens, Seiya Maikuma, handled the ball in the box, leading to a penalty for the home team. The penalty was taken and scored by Barnabas Varga.
But AZ was not giving up. Another one of the substitutes, Troy Parrot, showed his finishing qualities when he drilled the ball into the goal in the 90th minute.
It was all too late for AZ, who even scored another goal in injury time. Again, it was Parrott and Mijnans showing their quality to combine for the goal. The Irish striker left the ball cleverly for Mijnans, who used a controlled finish with his weaker right foot to guide the ball into the corner. This made it 4-3 and was also the final score.
The Alkmaarders have a tough task in the next round. They will face either Galatasaray, who lost 2-1 to Ajax on Thursday. Or the Spanish team Real Sociedad. They will find out which team they face at the draw on Friday.
