Telstar beat Willem II to seal first promotion to the Eredivisie in 47 years

Telstar will be playing in the Eredivisie again for the first time in 47 years. The Noord-Holland club confirmed their promotion by defeating Willem II 1-3 in the final of the playoffs. The first leg of the tie had finished 2-2 three days ago.

FC Volendam and Excelsior had already ensured their promotion to the Eredivisie for next season. Willem II will be relegated with RKC Waalwijk and Almere City FC. This comes a season after Willem II had won the second division, the Keuken Kampioen Divisie.

The Tilburgers started the season well with a 1-1 draw away to Feyenoord. But the team’s form dropped drastically after the winter break, finishing 16th in the process.

Telstar’s promotion is surprising. Anthony Correia’s side only made the playoffs on the final day by finishing 7th in the league. They then knocked out ADO Den Haag and FC Den Bosch before beating Willem II.

Telstar made a convincing start to the game. Mees Kaandorp broke the deadlock in the sixth minute after he finished off a good attack through the middle of the pitch. The team’s top scorer, Youssef El Kachati, doubled the scoreline in the 12th minute to make it 0-2, and Telstar had a significant chance to get a third shortly after.

Willem II was given a lifeline when Rob Nizet’s freekick was deflected into the goal in the 17th minute. This then led to a very open game, with both teams creating significant chances. There were no more goals in the first half.

Kaandorp put the game to bed just under the hour mark. The midfielder was at the right place at the right time to head home from a corner to make it 1-3. Willem II was unable to bring any more excitement to the game after this.

"After the 3-1, I already knew that we would not give it away anymore," Correia said about the third goal for his team, scored by Mees Kaandorp in the 58th minute. "Willem II has trouble creating chances against a steady defence. If necessary, we would just boot all the balls away."

"That we are promoted in this way, this is so enjoyable. It is annoying for Willem II. They are really an Eredivisie club, with a beautiful stadium, Correia added.