Feyenoord knocked out of the UEFA Champions League by Fenerbahce in Istanbul
Feyenoord were knocked out of the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday. The Rotterdammers lost 5-2 against Fenerbahce in Istanbul after having won the first game 2-1. Robin Van Persie’s side will now play in the UEFA Europa League this season.
Van Persie started the game with the same lineup that began the first leg. Quinten Timber and Hwang In-Beom returned to the side after missing the 2-0 win against NAC Breda on Saturday. They replaced Luciano Valente and Oussama Targhalline.
The home side almost took the lead in the 25th minute. Jhon Duran’s effort was blocked before he got another bite at the cherry, Feyenoord keeper Timon Wellenreuther was able to claw the second effort away from the goal.
Feyenoord took the lead in the 41st minute after a usual incident had resulted in a free kick. Fenerbahce goalkeeper İrfan Can Eğribayat thought that the referee had blown for a foul and picked the ball up with his hands, but the ref had not, and Feyenoord scored from the resulting free kick. The cross from Hwang was headed into the goal by Tsuyoshi Watanabe for his first goal in Feyenoord colors.
But Feyenoord had a disastrous ending to the first half, resulting in them going into the break with a 2-1 deficit. First, a corner from former Feyenoord player Sebastian Szymanski was headed into the goal by Archie Brown in the 44th minute, and then Jose Mourinho’s team took the lead in the last minute before halftime.
Some poor defending from the Rotterdammers was punished by Duran after his strike partner, Youssef En-Nesyri, had headed the ball down to the Colombian striker. It meant that the aggregate score was level going into halftime.
William Borges should have made the perfect start to life as a Feyenoord player in the second half when he was given a one-on-one opportunity due to a great long pass from Wellenreuther. The Brazilian had all the time to pick his spot, but his effort was still saved by Egribayat.
The home side made it 3-1 in the 55th minute due to a sublime goal from the Brazilian midfielder Fred. Jordan Lotomba was dispossessed by Brown, resulting in the ball rolling to Fred, who curled an effort high into the far corner from around 30 yards out.
This meant that Fenerbahce were ahead on aggregate for the first time in the tie. Feyenoord should have gotten themselves level when Luciano Valente played a sublime pass to Ayase Ueda in the 80th minute. However, the Japanese striker’s touch let him down, giving Egribayat the chance to knock the ball away.
Fenerbahce made it 4-1 in the 83rd minute. Brown got his second assist of the game when he put in a terrific cross for En Neysiri to knock home.
The Moroccan’s goal made it 5-3 on aggregate, and you got the feeling that the crowd in the Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium saw the job as finished. But Feyenoord brought some excitement back when Watanabe drilled the ball home in the 89th minute.
Jose Mourinho’s side were in survival mode, clearing every ball that came their way. That was until another error from Lotomba resulted in the home side putting the game to bed. Feyenoord’s right back had plenty of time to control the ball, but he decided to head it. The header went straight to the Brazilian substitute Talisca, who then got past Lotomba before placing the ball into the corner and killing Feyenoord’s Champions League hopes in the process.
Fenerbahce will now go on to face either SL Benfica or OGC Nice in the next round. Feyenoord’s qualifying rounds are now over, Van Persie’s side will play in the main stage of the Europa League.
