Bijlow wanted to win the final for all of Feyenoord and Rotterdam

Bijlow fell onto the field after the final whistle of the final blow. He was then comforted by his former team-mate at Feyenoord, Rick Karsdorp, who now plays in AS Roma’s defense. “We know each other well and I like him,” said the 24-year-old goalkeeper. “But of course I prefer to win alone.”

Bijlow then decided to thank the fans who accompanied him, along with all his teammates. Most fans were just as disappointed as the Feyenoord players. But they clapped their favorites for this season’s exciting 19 Conference League games in Europe. They sang the songs “Feyenoord until you die” and “You never walk alone”.

It seemed unlikely that Bijlow would play the rest of the season after having foot surgery in March. But I really did everything I could to stay in this final,” he said. Last week he attended group training for the first time. Despite the lack of match pace, trainer Arne Slot offered him a base point for the final battle against AS Roma. .

Bijlow played well and did nothing about Nicolò Zaniolo’s decisive goal. The Italian fired after Gernot Trauner misjudged a cross from Gianluca Mancini. ,,We didn’t play well in the first half”, said Bijlow. “In the second half we were close to the equalizer a few times, but they finished the game. They are good at that.”

Bijlow did not want to speculate about what would happen in Rotterdam in the coming days if Feyenoord would win the final against AS Roma. How many fans arrived at Rotterdam The Hague airport on Thursday? How big was the party Friday?

“We have put Feyenoord and Rotterdam back on the map of Europe,” said Bijlow. “It was great to be back on the pitch, but I would have preferred to be here with a different feeling. It’s not about me anymore, it’s about our team. We can only be proud of this team. They have come this far and are playing a European final with Feyenoord for the first time in twenty years.”