Feyenoord come back from a goal down to beat Groningen and set up cup final with NEC

Feyenoord came back from a goal down to beat Second Division side FC Groningen in the Kuip on Thursday in the KNVB Cup Semi-final. Laros Duarte had given the Groningers a shock lead in the first half before David Hancko and Ondrej Lingr completed the comeback for Arne Slot’s side. The Rotterdammers will face NEC in the final on April 21.

Feyenoord had to play the game without first-choice Left-back Quilindschy Hartman. The 22-year-old was too ill to play and was replaced by Marcos Lopez. Calvin Stengs returned to the side, having been rested in the match against Almere. Ayase Ueda was in the striker spot as Santiago Gimenez was suspended. Groningen made one change to the side that drew against Helmond Sport on Friday, with Johan Hove coming in for Joey Pelupessy.

Kick-off was delayed as the pitch was not visible due to the smoke from the fireworks that were lit pre-match.

The first bit of danger came from Groningen. Centre midfielder Laros Duarte hit the post with a shot from outside the sixteen-yard box when Feyenoord midfielder Mats Wieffer lost possession in midfield.

Duarte kept finding space to shoot from outside the box, and it led to the opening goal just after the half-hour mark. There was a considerable element of luck as the ball seemed to be going straight towards Feyenoord goalkeeper Timon Wellenreuther before being deflected by Thomas Beelen into the net.

Groningen sat back for the remaining 15 minutes of the half, with Feyenoord struggling to find the space to shoot. The score at halftime was 1-0 to the Keuken Kampioen Divisie side.

Feyenoord nearly scored in the first attack of the second half. Stengs reached the byline before pulling the ball back to Minteh, whose shot was straight at FC Groningen keeper Hidde Jurjus. Bart Nieuwkoop nearly scored with his first touch of the ball in the match on the rebound but Groningen defender Isak Dybvik Määttä did well to stop his effort.

The reigning Eredivisie Champions leveled the match just after an hour was played. Stengs played a great cross to the far post, where David Hancko had come forward from defence and side-footed it high into the net.

The substitutes made the difference for Feyenoord, which was evident in the winning goal, where all players involved in the final phase of the attack had come off the bench. Ramiz Zerrouki chipped the ball to Luka Ivanusec on the wing, whose low, hard cross was met by Ondrej Lingr, who slid it home.

The home side should have put the game to bed in the 90th minute. Bart Nieuwkoop played the ball to Ivanusec, whose effort wasn’t precise enough and saved by Jurjus. Yankuba Minteh’s effort from the rebound was even worse as it went straight at the Groningen keeper. The match finished on a sour note for Feyenoord as Calvin Stengs was stretchered off while crying.

The final will be played in Feyenoord’s stadium, the Kuip, on April 21. The last time Feyenoord reached the final was in 2020 when they were supposed to face Utrecht. The match was never played, however, due to the Coronavirus pandemic.