Feyenoord decided on Friday to shield the entire field with nets during the remaining Eredivisie matches of this season. Coming Sunday, the nets will already be set up for the duel with RKC Waalwijk.
The club is forced to take the measure after the announcement by the KNVB to pay closer attention to throwing objects. If a player is now hit by an object from the audience, the game will be stopped immediately.
In addition, more stringent action is being taken against throwing objects in a broader sense. If objects land on the field, the game is immediately stopped. If it happens again after the restart, the game will be permanently stopped.
The protocols were tightened up by the football association following the events of Wednesday in Feyenoord’s cup match against Ajax (1-2). Ajax player Davy Klaassen was hit by a lighter during an altercation in De Kuip. After a cooldown, the game resumed.
Feyenoord and ESPN are looking for a solution
In the Eredivisie classic between Feyenoord and Ajax earlier this year, there were also nets all around the field. Back then, there were many complaints from television viewers because of the high camera angle. Feyenoord is now in talks with ESPN to “realize the best possible image registration”.
For Wednesday’s classic in the semi-finals of the TOTO KNVB Cup, the club considered it responsible to remove the net in some places, including where the riot took place. Partly because of this, Klaassen could eventually be hit.
In the Eredivisie, Feyenoord will play four more times on its own field. The team from Rotterdam are also still active in the Europa League. Feyenoord has decided to leave section Z empty for the home game against AS Roma. That is the part of the stadium from which the lighter was thrown on Wednesday.
Resterende thuisduels Feyenoord dit seizoen:
- Zondag 9 april: Feyenoord-RKC
- Donderdag 13 april: Feyenoord-AS Roma
- Zondag 23 april: Feyenoord-FC Utrecht
- Zondag 14 mei: Feyenoord-Go Ahead Eagles
- Zondag 28 mei: Feyenoord-Vitesse
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