In a hard-fought match, NEC defeated PEC Zwolle on Tuesday evening in the first round of the KNVB Cup. The Nijmegen team needed an extension, but the fighting spirit from the second half gave them the victory. Afterwards, Rogier Meijer discussed the sad arbitration, an annoyed Koki Ogawa and the luxury at left back. “Competition is good, because we have to improve.”
“I’m just really happy, actually. That’s because you’re one lap ahead,” the trainer begins with a smile ForzaNEC. “If you play extra time and lose, it’s a sour feeling. Of course there is relief, because it was a crazy match, but luckily we were on the right side of the score.”
To trust
After the 2-2, Meijer didn’t really see anything going wrong for his team. “I was happy that he (PEC Zwolle goalkeeper Jasper Schendelaar, ed.) did not grab that ball. We had a few moments before that too. I had the feeling that if we made it 2-2 we would win. Although I have to be honest: I also had that feeling at 1-1, because I thought we were in the match better.” Even after the 4-3 from the spot, it was not really a success for the trainer. “I didn’t have the feeling that we would give away the lead, because you also saw something developing in the team.”
“How we defend at 1-2, how we lose the ball at 0-1, that determines how you play the match,” sighs Meijer. “Fortunately we fought over that and that is the most important thing.”
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Press early
The first half in particular was not enjoyable for anyone who cares about NEC. There was hardly any football and the pressure from Zwolle kept the Nijmegen residents calm. “Zwolle played the long ball a lot, because we played with Rober (González, ed.) next to Koki (Ogawa, ed.). When you see how we process those balls, you always have to chase them. We won the matches themselves, but then we put the ball back in midfield at Zwolle. That means you have to keep going back. We won the ball late on the field and they put pressure early, and we couldn’t escape that in the first 25 minutes.”
NEC became a little more dangerous towards half time. “After that there came a phase when Hansen offered himself more in midfield with Rober. Then I thought that every ball we played forward immediately created danger. So it wasn’t that we didn’t want to or weren’t sharp, but how you processed those balls in the first phase. That feeling was not good.”
Poor arbiter
The feeling about referee Robin Hensgens, who was sent to Nijmegen by the KNVB at the last minute, was also not good. Meijer was careful with his words, but they still spoke volumes. “I must say I didn’t think the referee was very good. It’s unbelievable that I didn’t get a yellow card. I really deserved one.”
“He wasn’t really in shape and gave another penalty… From one and a half meters away, Nuytinck had the ball shot towards his head where his hand happened to be hanging in front of. Then he points to the spot, which wasn’t good, but it fit the game.”
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Ogawa
Despite an argument in the first half with Vito van Crooij, Meijer was satisfied with striker Koki Ogawa. The Japanese missed a great chance against Almere City and was exasperated to score. He ended up doing that twice. “He told me he was going to score, but he’s been saying that for two weeks now, so I was kind of done with that. You also saw after the goal that something fell off him. If you see the work he has done, also in the transition, it was necessary. If he makes the goals easier, that will only help us.”
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Finally, the trainer discussed the left backs in his selection. Thomas Ouwejan started the kick-off, but an aggressive Calvin Verdonk came on strongly. “They are two good players for one position, so it is certainly a choice that we always weigh. In principle, Calvin would have played today, but he couldn’t train on Friday, so that’s why he was chosen now. He came in well and was aggressive in a good way.”
“The competition is good, also at the front, because we have to improve. I do see Ouwejan as an option for left winger in some matches, but in matches where we are better or have an equal opponent, I prefer to play with a real left winger,” Meijer concludes.
Photos: Rob Koppers
