Feyenoord is currently performing quite poorly in the Eredivisie and in all other competitions in which it has already been eliminated. The pool at the back has already been thin in the second half of the season, and it has been made even thinner by Feyenoord itself due to the departure of Jan Plug.
Plug will spend the rest of this season on a rental basis for FC Dordrecht, where he will have to rack up more flying hours than is possible at Feyenoord. Plug came through the youth ranks of Feyenoord and has a contract until the summer of 2028. This season he has already played eight matches for Feyenoord and he was also allowed to start in his first match on behalf of Dordrecht.
Van Persie could have used Plug well
The fact that Jan Plug, who played more and more for Feyenoord during the season, is now no longer available for Feyenoord, could be a major problem for Robin van Persie. In the coming weeks, Van Persie has to play with Feyenoord against FC Utrecht (away), Go Ahead Eagles (home), sc Telstar (home), FC Twente (away) and NAC Breda (away). Feyenoord no longer plays in the cup or the Europa League and in the Eredivisie second place is the highest achievable. In these matches he will have to reduce the pressure on his job, and that of Dennis te Kloese, with results.
Eredivisie standings after 21 matches (*one more match to be played)
| Place | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | PSV | 56 |
| 2 | Feyenoord | 39 |
| 3 | NEC* | 38 |
| 4 | Ajax | 38 |
| 5 | Sparta Rotterdam | 35 |
| 6 | THE | 32 |
This has to be done without many important players. Feyenoord is dealing with many injuries at the back. For example, Gijs Smal, Tsuyoshi Watanabe, Givairo Read, Thomas Beelen, Gernot Trauner and Malcolm Jeng are injured and a few of these players do not appear to be returning for the time being. Feyenoord can certainly use Watanabe, Read, Beelen and Trauner at the moment.
This had also been the case for Plug, who will play the rest of the season at FC Dordrecht. Feyenoord signed Mats Deijl and Jeremiah St. Juste, but the latter certainly made little impression in his first match against PSV. Van Persie will have to tinker left or right in his defense in the near future, and must therefore do this without having Plug as an option.
Feyenoord results in January
| Datum | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|
| January 11 | sc Heerenveen (away) | 2-2 |
| January 18 | Sparta Rotterdam (home) | 3-4 |
| January 22 | Sturm Graz (home) | 3-0 |
| January 25 | Heracles Almelo (home) | 4-2 |
| January 29 | Real Betis Sevilla (away) | 2-1 |
