Place Two: Consistency Issues & Alternatives

NEC can easily storm into the top three of the Premier League tomorrow evening. To achieve this, Ajax must be defeated. With the good results and the almost weekly compliments about the attacking playing style, one can secretly dream of a second place.

But they don’t want to start that yet in Nijmegen. “We are not yet consistent enough for that,” says veteran Bryan Linssen.

The team of coach Dick Schreuder is currently in fourth place. NEC has already scored 41 times in 16 matches. As many as number two Feyenoord and even 11 more than opponent Ajax.

The objective, a place in the play-offs for European football, does not seem to cause any problems in this way. Shouldn’t the objective be adjusted?

“My objective is to see what is in it and to get the most out of it,” says 35-year-old Linssen a day before the competition. “If you lose tomorrow, you might be sixth and that’s still fine. But I don’t want that. Losing tomorrow must hurt.”

With Ajax struggling this season and Feyenoord having fallen into a deep trough, perhaps more than a fourth place beckons. Would a second place and therefore a Champions League ticket be an option?

“No, that is very strange,” says the small attacker who has already scored five times and provided six assists. “We still have to take steps to achieve this, become more consistent. Win matches such as Telstar-away. And we have to give away fewer goals.”

Trainer Schreuder thinks so. He starts laughing when he hears the words ‘place two’.

“We have to remain realistic. We want to reach the top eight. I also see many teams that are doing well now and are not yet in the top eight. So it will be a tough competition. And there will also be tougher times ahead, which we will have to get through well.”

Schreuder wants to postpone that difficult period for a while. First Ajax must be defeated. A team that is defensive, as Feyenoord coach Robin van Persie said last week. For that reason he did not even want to call the Classic lost by Feyenoord (2-0) a top match.

“But I don’t see it that way at all. I see a team that really plays forward. With Fred Grim there has been a different dynamic. If you get results, it also looks a lot more structured. That brings peace and the Ajax staff has done well.”

“You always try to stay close to yourself, close to your own playing style,” says Schreuder. “Everyone knows that about each other. We know from Ajax what they can do high or low on the field. And Ajax will also know what we do. Then it’s about how you can fight each other on the day itself.”