AZ missed a major league win for the third game in a row. After losing at FC Twente and drawing at home to sc Heerenveen, Sparta Rotterdam lost 1-0 at Alkmaar on Saturday night.
A few weeks ago, AZ was still battling for the national title, but placing in the top three seems to be coming off the table more and more.
AZ were bosses in the first quarter of an hour against fierce Sparta, who meanwhile took fifth place from FC Twente thanks to the win. Without Jesper Karlsson, the winger was out of the game with a minor injury as Alkmaarder held Sparta back and created the occasional few chances.
Lauritsen hit the target
Mexx Meerdink, who replaced Karlsson, forced Spartan goalkeeper Olij to make a great save with a dangerous shot. It took a while for Sparta to lose their cool, but coach Maurice Steijn’s side also had a few chances in the first half. Biggest hit right now.
Koki Saito drove Sam Beukema crazy on the left side of the field, then the Japanese sent a perfect cross over Tobias Lauritsen’s head. The mighty Norwegian was also completely free, which made opening the score a piece of cake.
After the break, Sparta continued to be a tough contender for the hosts and even AZ escaped. Lauritsen was at the end of a sharp counterattack and shot hard in the pass. For a long time AZ could have believed in a good outcome, as the Norwegian did not deliver the fatal blow.
This resulted in an exciting final stage with a series of chances. Jens Odgaard had two good chances to equalize. First goalkeeper Olij intervened, shortly after the Danish player hit the crossbar from just a few meters. A few minutes later, Yuki Sugawara hit the pole.
AZ then pumped the ball several more times into the opponent’s 16, but no more goals were scored. The Eindhoven side is five points more than AZ, thanks to PSV’s 4-0 win over Excelsior. Number three Ajax took two more points but missed a game.
Source: NOS

I’m George Gonzalez, a professional journalist and author at The Nation View. With more than 5 years of experience in the field, I specialize in covering sports news for various print media outlets. My passion for writing has enabled me to craft stories that capture the attention of readers all over the world.