AZ Starts Their Season On A Win
- therookiereporters
- 1 hour ago
- 2 min read
The weekend of the 7th of August marked the first playing round in the Eredivisie, and on Saturday the 8th of August AZ Alkmaar played against the newly promoted ADO Den Haag in their home stadium.
Line-up
AZ Alkmaar: De Busser, DIjkstra, Goes, Schouten, Chávez, Kwakman, Koopmeiners, Patati, Smit, Daal, Meerdink
ADO Den Haag: Nikiéma, Hokke, Mulder, Waem, Sylla, Van Mieghem, de Bruin, Kilo, Hawkings, Eduardo, Rottier
First Half
ADO started the match at a fast and confident pace making it difficult for AZ to find space for a goal in the 16 meter area. ADO was defending compactly and was looking dangerous when they were moving towards the AZ goal.
During the first half AZ had more control of the ball but they were struggling to create chances because of the defenders from AD. In the 22th minute AZ thought they had gotten the lead after a goal from Dijkstra, but the VAR overruled it.
The shot gave ADO a warning, but they continued to stay organised to get a goal in before the first half ended and both teams couldn't find a breakthrough before the end of the first half so it ended at 0-0.
Second Half
AZ came out stronger after the break and they were putting pressure on the defense ADO, the homeside was moving the ball quickly enough to create space around the penalty area.
The hard work finally paid off when in the 61st minute Daal shot a ball that found the net giving AZ the 1-0 lead.
ADO was now trying to make it an equaliser, but AZ took advantage of the space they were leaving. Just seven minutes later, midfielder Calvin Stengs marked his return to AZ since 2021 with a goal, making it 2-0 for the Alkmaarders.
ADO tried to get a goal in before the end of the match, but couldn’t find their way past the AZ defence. AZ managed the final stages of the match well and kept ADO from creating a comeback. The last whistle confirmed a 2-0 victory for AZ. The Alkmaarders will start the new Eredivisie with three points, while ADO left Alkmaar without a goal.
With the 2-0 win, AZ can look ahead to next Saturday when they will be playing against FC Utrecht. ADO will have their chance to redeem themselves next Sunday when they will be playing against FC Groning.
Article Written Zoë Wokke
