VVV-Venlo - Excelsior 0-0
The VVV-Venlo players were welcomed at the cosy Seacon Stadion De Koel with loud bangs and beautiful fireworks which filled the night sky. The D’n Twellefde Man Fanclub were present in full force, showing their support for the team right from the off.
The first piece of notable action came after six minutes: a scorching drive from Yanic Wildschut flew just over. The Amsterdammer, who is now a Venlo regular, was again in action five minutes later but his volley lacked the power to pose any real threat. Despite not creating any dangerous chances, VVV-Venlo still held the upper hand.
VVV-Venlo enjoyed the lion’s share of possession in the first half hour, forcing Excelsior into rearguard defending. The Venlo players were therefore restricted to shots from its midfielders, forcing keeper Joost Broerse into action, once for a fierce shot from Rogier Molhoek. The keeper was also in the thick of it shortly after, colliding with Maya Yoshida. Both required treatment off the field, but both were able to return to the action a few minutes later.
Just before the end of the first half there was an old-fashioned goal-mouth scramble: Excelsior were unable to properly clear their lines, leading to a kafuffle in which the ball struck the post, eventually ending up amid a mass of legs and bodies. Moments later Ahmed Musa chased a lost cause before hitting an incisive pass which was narrowly missed by Bobby Cullen.
In the 60th minute Marcel Meeuwis struck a shot at full force, with keeper De Ruiter just able to tip the ball out of harm’s way. The subsequent corner led to Maya Yoshida almost making it 1-0 but the ball went narrowly wide. The counter attack saw Excelsior break away and hit the post.
Venlo used the right hand side to attack with purpose: Musa often distributed from a distance, but all too often his efforts were contained by a well-marshalled group of Excelsior defenders. Musa occasionally opted to use his pace as the threat, but this also failed to pay dividends in terms of real opportunities. Excelsior continued to threaten on the counter, calling on the reflexes of keeper De Vogt a number of times.
The game ended with the same score as it began: 0-0
Photos by Jack Jacobs will be online shortly at http://sportsphotoagency.net/
VVV-Venlo – Excelsior: 0-0
Attendants: 7,840
Yellow cards: 30. Andrea Mei, 37. Ahmed Musa, 55. Rogier Molhoek, 61. Maya Yoshida.
VVV-Venlo line-up:
Wilko de Vogt; Niels Fleuren, Maya Yoshida, Andrea Mei, Michael Timisela; Rogier Molhoek (80. Barry Maguire), Marcel Meeuwis, Ahmed Musa, Bobby Cullen (64. Michael Uchebo), Bryan Linssen and Yanic Wildschut.
Excelsior line-up:
De Ruiter, De Graaf, Nieveld, Smith, Scheimann, Vorthoren, Broerse, Alberg (70. Lagouireh), Jansen, Van Buren (46. Vincken), Van Steensel.
