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| Feyenoord
v. Fenerbahçe 1-0 |
13 Aug 2002
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Feyenoord trainer Bert van Marwijk had put his
team in the role of underdog going into this match, perhaps a slight piece
of psychology, although the
Rotterdammers were aware that if the Turkish side had a weakness it was to
be found in their defence. Feyenoord are definitely a stronger, more confident
team than at the beginning of last season. And so they should be as reigning
UEFA Cup champions! Fenerbahçe started with only one man up front and the
rest pulled back in their own half, leaving Feyenoord to push forward in a
relatively relaxed, cautious tempo. They had their best chance in the 15th
minute but Kalou's cross flew past Lurling who couldn't connect with it.
Minutes later Gyan pushed past a pair of defenders but his pass failed to
connect with Emerton, who's appearance tonight reduces the chance of a move
to Leeds or any other club this season to zero. Kalou then broke through the
Turkish wall and unleashed a shot which curled over the bar. After 25
minutes of play Fenerbahçe began to push forward and threaten the
Rotterdammers, a freekick in the 28th could have proved dangerous but the
shot was no problem for Zoetebier. The temperature had been rising for some
time and in the 34th Kalou was victim of a kick in the crutch which certainly
deserved a red-card for Miroslav Stevic but the French referee didn't dare award it. Emerton's
yellow card in the 43rd was the 5th of theng 45 minutes and cards were
the only statistics when the whistle went for the break. The first half had
been too tight and congested for 'pretty' football, or real goal-scoring
chances, the 2nd half would have to be different or the Rotterdammers would
have a 'voyage to hell' when they travel for the return in Turkey.
The 2nd half kicked-off in higher tempo - Ramon van Haaren replaced by
Tomasz Rzasa giving Feyenoord some more bite. Brett Emerton's 50th minute
shot was parried by the fists of goalie Rüstü Reçber. Kalou twisted and turned on the
edge of the box in the 52nd, unleashing his 2nd shot of the match but
it went over. With the flow of play increasing it gave both teams the chance
to exert pressure and there were a good number of counters. In the 59th
minute Lurling was replaced by young Leonardo I and Feyenoord began to push
forward with greater frequency. Finally their efforts were rewarded when
'Japanese Wizard' Shinji Ono, who'd radiated a serene confidence throughout
the match but had not been his usual creative-self, scored after a nice one-two with Pierre van
Hooijdonk, sliding it into the left-hand corner with the inside of his
left-foot in the 64th minute. The Turkish
team got back into the match, due to Feyenoord's indecisiveness following
Ono's goal, bringing on Argentinian midfielder Ariel Ortega (surprisingly
left-out of the starting lineup) and adjusting their tactics. It proved a
wise choice as he almost immediately set-up Haim Revivo with a fine chance
to shoot, in the 78th, but Zoetebier was alert and dealt confidently with
the effort. At the other end,
Kalou was served up with a through ball by P-Air, launching another shot
from the edge of the box but it was blocked by Reçber's legs. In the
88th Leonardo was suddenly free on the left and served a beauty of a cross
which evaded the otherwise safe-hands of the goalie but there was noone
there to connect with it. The whistle finally went for the end of play to
give the Rotterdammers their points but they will have a tough return ahead
of them in 2 weeks time. P-Air was satisfied after the match with his team's
performance - they'd not created many chances but had given little away and
have proved last season that they can score away goals too!
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