Jorgensen and Haps are playing very good. The worst players are Vilhena and Boetius. Why does Vilhena wear the number 10 ? He is constantly playing back passes, absolutly no factor for his team. Boetius only makes poor choices, he looks really amateurish next to the brazilian players of Shakthar.
Would like to see Toornstra subbed in for Vilhena. Boy, what a stupid ball Amrabat gave into the 9.15 meter circle leading to the 2nd goal. Is that btw our Fred playing with Sjachtar?
Our Fred ? Which one ? Toornstra should have played. Gio keeps making poor choices, he should be sacked.
We had a Brasilian Fred, but thought he wasnot good enough, but later went on in Europe being sold for tens of millions, the same as Bastos.
Toornstra and Larsson should have started this game. Boetius also is fading out.as supected he is all about speed. Like Elia.
ADO Den Haag – Feyenoord 2-2 ADO Den Haag: Zwinkels 6,5; Ebuehi 6, Meissner 6, Kanon 7,5, Meijers 6,5; Immers 7, El Khayati 7 (89. Gorter -), Bakker 6,5; Becker 6, Falkenburg 6 (74. Johnsen -), Lorenzen 5,5 (85. Hooi -). Feyenoord: Jones 5; Nieuwkoop 6 (59. Amrabat 6), St. Juste 6, Tapia 5,5 (83. Kramer -), Haps 6; Toornstra 4,5 (62. Boëtius -), El Ahmadi 6,5, Vilhena 5; Berghuis 5, Jörgensen 6, Larsson 5,5. Arbiter: Nijhuis 5 Man of the Match: Met drie succesvolle tackles, drie intercepties en een handjevol weggewerkte ballen deed Wilfried Kanon vanmiddag positief van zich spreken tegen Feyenoord. De Ivoriaans international stond zijn mannetje tegen Nicolai Jörgensen en tekende bovendien aan voor zijn tweede goal in de eredivisie. Zijn eerste dateerde van 14 mei 2017, toen Kanon in Den Haag scoorde tegen een andere Rotterdamse ploeg: Excelsior. 86440
https://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2017/11/0...-niet-meer-te-kunnen-winnen-13865727-a1580071 De landskampioen lijkt niet meer te kunnen winnen ADO Den Haag-Feyenoord Tegen het onmachtige ADO Den Haag bleef Feyenoord steken op 2-2. De ploeg slaagt er niet in wedstrijden te killen. Steven Verseput 5 november 2017 ANP Aanvoerder Karim El Ahmadi ligt languit op zijn rug op het kunstgras van het Cars Jeans Stadion, aan de rand van Den Haag. Aanvaller Steven Berghuis heeft de handen in de zij, ongeloof straalt uit zijn ogen. Spits Nicolai Jørgensen zit secondenlang gehurkt bij de doelmond, met een versteende blik in het niets. Zie hier de instorting van titelverdediger Feyenoord, na de 2-2 bij het onmachtige ADO Den Haag. Feyenoord lijkt niet meer te kunnen winnen, zo kan je voorzichtig vaststellen op eenderde van de competitie. Het spel is af en toe best aardig, maar de cijfermatige afrekening onder aan de streep is diep in het rood. Zesde plek op de ranglijst met vijftien verliespunten en liefst twaalf punten achterstand op koploper PSV. En maar één punt meer dan kleine stadsbroeder Excelsior. Slechts drie van de laatste dertien wedstrijden wist Feyenoord te winnen, alle competities meegerekend. „Het is realistisch om nu niet aan het kampioenschap te denken”, zei El Ahmadi bij RTV Rijnmond. De tweede sportieve crisis in tweeëneenhalf seizoen onder Giovanni van Bronckhorst is een feit. De vorige vond plaats rond de winter van 2016, de reeks van zeven nederlagen. Maar er is een wezenlijk verschil met die eerdere periode. Feyenoord was destijds volledig stuurloos, het was voetbal zonder regie, zonder ideeën. Nu wordt er – naar de maatstaven van de eredivisie – in fases best redelijk gespeeld. Maar het is te weinig. Feyenoord gromt wel, maar bijt niet door. Feyenoord is momenteel als een tractor met zwaarbeladen wagen die een blubberige dijk probeert op te komen, maar op driekwart vast komt te zitten. Hoe diep het gas ook wordt ingedrukt, ze weten het laatste stukje net niet te overbruggen, dat beetje paardenkracht dat ze vorig seizoen wel hadden om moeizame wedstrijden binnen te slepen. Het is een soort mentale barrière waar ze niet doorheen lijken te breken. Zie de vele kansen vorige week in de tweede helft tegen Roda JC (1-1) en zie de overheersing in de eerste helft zondag tegen ADO. En zie de twee enorme mogelijkheden van Berghuis in blessuretijd. Het is het allemaal net niet. Lees ook het profiel over Tom Beugelsdijk: de vriendelijke reus van ADO Ze zijn in gevecht met zichzelf. Doelman Brad Jones en zijn gepruts bij de 2-1, niet voor het eerst dit jaar. En Berghuis, dit seizoen trefzeker met zeven goals, maar nu mist hij in totaal vier kansen. „Dit seizoen gaan ze er vrij makkelijk in, helemaal als ze voor mijn linker komen. Dan is het de hoek uitzoeken en zitten ze er gewoon in”, zegt hij. „Vandaag niet. Ik zat ook niet lekker in de wedstrijd, misschien maak ik ze daarom niet.” Hij zegt drie keer: dat is ook voetbal. Feyenoord zit – en dat is ook voetbal – weer traditioneel in de achtervolging. Wat nu, wordt aan Berghuis gevraagd. „We proberen die ballen erin te schieten.” Soms moet je het ook niet ingewikkelder maken dan het is. 86494
So, back to competition business. Botteghin has extended his contract and seems to recover well. VVV Venlo is the next opponent in Rotterdam. With a win we can pull back VVV to 1 point behind. 86774
So the trashing of Ireland by Denmark suddenly gives the tabloids another impetus to throw around transfer rumours to sell papers. All of a sudden there are EPL teams after Nico Jorgensen. Okay, after the World Cup, in which he scores Denmark's goals getting them out of the group of death (Brasil, Spain, Denmark, Morocco), and then into the semi-final we can talk about 80 million transfer as a starter. 86807
Demmit. 5-6 Feyenoord players in the WC2018, but the ones most important, arenot. Congratulations to Renato for taking the last slot with Peru. Tapia aan de bal tegen Ryan Thomas van PEC Zwolle. © AFP © Instagram Renato Tapia 86820
https://www.ad.nl/nederlands-voetbal/hoe-succes-kan-leiden-tot-nieuw-succes~a1f62d34/ This article talks about how the feel good mood of the WC go'ers can have an influence on the spirit of the team. Hope it does. Hoe succes kan leiden tot nieuw succes Feyenoord heeft dit seizoen nauwelijks iets te juichen. Toch was het voor veel spelers de laatste tijd feest, de tickets voor het WK werden bijna opgestapeld. Misschien pakt dat vanavond thuis tegen VVV goed uit. ,,Dit kan voor Feyenoord ook heel goed zijn.’’ Mikos Gouka 18-11-17, 09:09 86943
What keeps annoying me is the constant talk of the socalled pundits and media about a crisis at Feyenoord, not getting results like last year etc. The f*cking *mbe*ls donot care about the fact our complete best CD heart of last years soccer awrds was out with numerous other injuries. Just stirring shit to see if they can get fans into uproar. Shitheads is the most flattering description of these braindead morons. The only "crisis" is that we, after a mere 10 matches arenot in the top 2 places. That's all. These shitheads are trying to stirr things up against GvB, just to be able to sell their shitty secretions.
Well, that didnot go according to the plan. Especially as they were prepared for the situation that lead to the goal. An ultra defensive side gets a lucky punch, a beauty it must be said, but still a lucky punch. The chances are created, but the finishing is lacking. But that's a confidence matter, not a lack of quality. Ditch the title aspiration, go for spot 2. Brad Jones gets a heart warming support from the fans in commemoration of the death of his child 6 years ago on this day. 86982
https://www.ad.nl/nederlands-voetbal/jones-bedankt-legioen-voor-ontroerende-lichtjesactie~ad6b6840/ Jones bedankt Legioen voor ontroerende lichtjesactie Brad Jones heeft de supporters op de website van Feyenoord bedankt voor de lichtjesactie gisteravond in de Kuip. ,,Een mooi gebaar in deze moeilijke tijd van het jaar voor mij en mijn familie.''
The AD Sportwereld rating: Feyenoord – VVV 1-1 Feyenoord: Jones 5; Nieuwkoop 5,5 (78. Diks -), Van Beek 7, St. Juste 5,5, Haps 6; El Ahmadi 6, Toornstra 5 (89. Kramer -), Vilhena 5; Berghuis 5, Jørgensen 6, Larsson 6,5 (70. Boëtius -). VVV: Unnerstall 7; Janse 6 (72. Opoku -), Röseler 6, Promes 6,5, Janssen 6, Labylle 6 (38. Hunte 6); Van Bruggen 6,5, Seuntjens 7, Leemans 6; Van Crooy 6,5, Thy 6,5 (90. Dekker -). Arbiter: Higler 7 Man of the Match: Waar zijn collega Brad Jones er bij de gelijkmaker van Damian van Bruggen niet erg gelukkig uit zag, daar maakte VVV-doelman Lars Unnerstall niet voor het eerst dit seizoen een stabiele indruk. De 27-jarige Duitse goalie, overgekomen van Fortuna Düsseldorf, redde op pogingen van onder anderen Larsson, Vilhena, Berghuis en Jörgensen en had zonder twijfel een groot aandeel in het feit dat VVV voor het eerst sinds 1959 weer een puntje pakte in een duel op bezoek bij de regerend landskampioen. 87043
Pep talk for Gio https://www.ad.nl/champions-league-...er-dan-de-resultaten-doen-vermoeden~a388182f/ Guardiola: Feyenoord is beter dan de resultaten doen vermoeden Manchester City treedt morgen in de Champions League tegen Feyenoord met een hoop andere spelers aan, maar manager Pep Guardiola wil niets weten van een B-ploeg. ANP 20-11-17, 11:36 Laatste update: 15:43 ,,Wij hebben een grote selectie, tegen Feyenoord zullen een paar andere jongens met frisse benen spelen. Maar in mijn hele carrière als trainer heb ik nog nooit met een A- en een B-ploeg gewerkt, voor mij is iedereen hetzelfde'', zei Guardiola. Lees ook Moedeloze Gio: We hebben niet het vermogen de kansen te benutten Lees meer Feyenoord is beter dan de resultaten doen vermoeden. Pep Guardiola De Spaanse trainer wees op de uitwedstrijd tegen Napoli (2-4). ,,Toen speelden Danilo en Ilkay Gündogan. Dat kan je toch geen B-ploeg noemen?'' De ongeslagen koploper van de Premier League is met de volle score van twaalf punten al zeker van een vervolg in de Champions League. ,,De eerste stap is gezet. Nu willen we graag groepswinnaar worden, zodat we in de volgende ronde de return thuis mogen spelen'', aldus Guardiola. De succescoach nam het op voor Feyenoord, dat nog altijd puntloos is. ,,Ik heb een paar wedstrijden van ze gezien. Ze spelen niet zo slecht als iedereen zegt. Natuurlijk gaat Feyenoord proberen te winnen van ons. Ik ben nog nooit een voetballer tegengekomen die dat niet wil.'' Tapia © ANP Pro Shots Renato Tapia keert terug in de selectie van Feyenoord. De Peruaan ontbrak zaterdag in de teleurstellend verlopen thuiswedstrijd tegen VVV-Venlo (1-1). Tapia kreeg rust van trainer Giovanni van Bronckhorst omdat hij toen pas net terug was van een wereldreis, die had geresulteerd in kwalificatie voor het WK met Peru. De verdediger, die ook op het middenveld uit de voeten kan, was vandaag weer van de partij bij de afsluitende training in De Kuip. Sam Larsson deed daar ook aan mee. De Zweedse aanvaller moest tegen VVV twintig minuten voor tijd van het veld, omdat hij last had gekregen van zijn kuit. Larsson was tot dat moment de gevaarlijkste speler bij Feyenoord. De vleugelspits trainde vandaag zonder problemen mee en is klaar voor de krachtmeting met de ongeslagen koploper van de Premier League. Dat geldt ook voor Bart Nieuwkoop. De rechtsback werd tegen VVV uit voorzorg gewisseld omdat hij weer wat last kreeg van zijn hamstring. El Ahmadi Feyenoord moet het tegen Manchester City stellen zonder de geschorste aanvoerder Karim El Ahmadi. Daarnaast ontbreken de al langer geblesseerde verdedigers Eric Botteghin en Jan-Arie van der Heijden. De landskampioen staat na vier groepsduels nog altijd op nul punten, terwijl City met de volle score van twaalf punten al zeker is van een vervolg in de Champions League. Trainer Pep Guardiola mist de geblesseerde verdedigers Benjamin Mendy en John Stones, die bij de eerste ontmoeting in De Kuip (0-4) twee keer scoorde. Nicolás Otamendi keert terug van een schorsing. © Photo News 87050
De basisopstelling van Feyenoord op bezoek bij het swingende Manchester City is bekend! Zoals verwacht heeft trainer Giovanni van Bronckhorst een plekje vrijgemaakt voor Jean-Paul Boëtius. De van nature flankspeler vervangt de Deen Nicolai Jørgensen in het centrum van de aanval. Verder vervangt Sofyan Amrabat de eigenlijke aanvoerder Karim El Ahmadi op het middenveld. De Marokkaans-international is geschorst. In plaats van hem draagt vice-captain Brad Jones nu de aanvoerdersband: 87095
live blog:https://www.ad.nl/buitenlands-voetb...ar-zonder-jorgensen~a2d1f2c9/#football-lineup Manchester City 0 -0 Feyenoord 22' LIVE: Onrustige Jones baart zorgen bij Feyenoord
Thought your team would steal a point at Manchester but school yard defending by Tapia gave away the match winner. Too bad, out of Europe for sure now.
The Amsterdam paper making itself laughable: Feyenoord maakt zich belachelijk Door Van onze Telesportredactie
No, we have energy for 80-85 minutes against the top of Europe, but then we cannot cope anymore. It's simple the drainage that makes the late winner only by luck avoidable..
https://www.theguardian.com/footbal...hester-city-v-feyenoord-champions-league-live Start to read at the bottom of the post!! Man City 1 Home team scorers Raheem Sterling 88 Feyenoord 0 Away team scorers Manchester City v Feyenoord: Champions League – as it happened Raheem Sterling scored a 88th-minute winner as Manchester City topped their group, during a game in which 17-year-old winger Phil Foden made his debut Read Paul Wilson’s match report Raheem Sterling clips the ball into the back of the net. Photograph: Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images Match stats Possession 30 70 FEY30MNC70% Goal attempts Man City Off target 9 Feyenoord Off target 2 Man City On target 5 Feyenoord On target 1 Corners 6 4 Fouls 11 13 Offsides 3 0 Read Paul Wilson’s match report: Manchester City grateful for Raheem Sterling’s late winner against Feyenoord Manchester City were grateful for Raheem Sterling’s late winner in a tight match against Feyenoord Read more Full-time: City 1-0 Feyenoord City are through to the last 16 as group winners. This was a sub-standard performance in which several fringe players failed to grasp opportunities but victory was secured with a lovely goal by Sterling. 90+2 min: Diaz has already shown some nice touches: he’s got brilliant quick feet, is strong on the ball and brims with enterprise. 90 min: There will be at least four more minutes. City substitution: Diaz on, Sterling off. Off trots Sterling to a deserved ovation, and on comes an 18-year-old in whom City have high hopes. GOAL! City 1-0 Feyenoord (Sterling 88) That is a beautiful goal by Sterling! Gundogan played a short pass to him at the edge of the area. Sterling gave it back and then darted into the box to receive the return ball before clipping it daintily over the advancing keeper and into the net! Raheem Sterling clips the ball into the back of the net. Photograph: Nigel Roddis/EPA 86 min: Danilo booked for a sly foul. 85 min: Sterling shows good strength to hold off a defender and then slips an astute low pass through to Jesus. The Brazilian tries to dance past Niewukoop in the box but is denied by a terrific sliding tackle. 83 min: Silva curls in a corner. Jesus meets it at the near post but glances it wide off the far one. Feyenoord substitution: Basackikoglu on, Berghuis off. 82 min: It’s all still too slow for City. Feyenoord are giving Huddersfield a timely lesson in how to frustrate Guardiola’s team. 80 min: Amrabat booked for shunting Foden to the ground near half-way, the bully. Phil Foden is floored by Feyenoord’s Sofyan Amrabat. Photograph: Carl Recine/Action Images/Reuters City substitution: Foden on, Touré off. England’s U-17 World Cup hero makes his City and Champions League debut in place of the City and Ivory Coast legend. 73 min: Silva dinks the ball into a crowded goalmouth. Aguero takes it down immaculately on his chest and shoots on the swivel. Just wide! Feyenoord substitution: Nieuwkoop on, Diks off. 72 min: City have sorely missed Fernandinho, both in an attacking and defensive sense. 71 min: Ederson rushes way out of his area again to intercept another clever through-ball. 69 min: Vilhema and Larsson swaps lovely pass down the left. Then Larsson scoops a dainty pass from inside the box over Mangala and into the path of Berghuis. He shoots on the run from about 10 yards, but straight at Ederson, who bats it over the bar. Steven Berghuis fires a shot narrowly over the bar. Photograph: Paul Ellis/AFP/Getty Images 67 min: Toure wraps his foot around the ball and guides a lovely freekick just past the post. That was almost vintage Yaya. 65 min: Freekick to City, as Amrabat brings down Danilo about five yards outside the box, quit central. Toure time? 63 min: Sterling feeds De Bruyne, who lets fly from the left-hand corner of the area. His low shot swerves inches wide. And on that note, he departs to be replaced by Jesus. It’s almost as if there was no point in keeping him on now that he’s got that booking. 62 min: Yellow card for De Bruyne! It was a clumsy tackle at the edge of the City area. While that ensures De Bruyne will go into the knockout stages with a clean slate, it’s not the ideal place to give away a freekick. But the shot is bogged over the bar, so it turns out to be a win-win for City. 60 min: In this group’s other game, Napoli have taken a 1-0 lead over Shakhtar. That means even a draw here would ensure that City finish top of the group. 58 min: Guardiola is increasingly irate on the sideline. City are obviously still too slow and blunt for him. And now Mangala has gone and got himself a booking for a lubberly tackle on Boetius out by the touchline. 55 min: Vilhena booked for chopping down Toure after the Ivorian wriggled out of trouble on half-way. Only 35 minutes left for Dr Bruyne to get into the book too. 53 min: City have definitely shifted into a higher gear. They cut Feyenoord open again before being thwarted by an incorrect offside flag against Walker, who had been released brilliantly by De Bruyne. 51 min: Aguero fires over the bar from 20 yards after a good City move, much crisper and shaper than in the first half. 50 min: Danilo swings over a dangerous cross from the left. Aguero swings his left leg at it but gets his volley all wrong. Luckily, the ball spins out to De Bruyne at the edge of the box. The Belgian takes a touch and then slams a shot .... several yards over the bar. 47 min: Sharp move by City. Aguero funnels the ball wide to Silva, who bangs in a low cross. De Beek puts it behind his own goal before Sterling can pounce. 46 min: Does Guardiola do hairdryers? He looks peeved as he takes his place in the dugout after the break and he hasn’t made any personnel changes, obviously hoping that the 11 who meandered through the first period raise their games in the second. Half-time: Guardiola won’t be happy with that. Several players who’ve been given opportunities to impress have failed to take their chance so far, most obviously Toure and Bernardo Silva. Walker has been below-par, too, and the collective performance has generally lacked zip. 43 min: Sterling wins a corner. De Bruyne takes it short. Then City ties themselves in knots. 40 min: Ederson charges off his line and dives at the feet of Boetius, bravely pushing the ball out for a corner. He really is excellent as a sweeper-keeper. Ederson comes out to thwart Tonny Vilhena. Photograph: Oli Scarff/AFP/Getty Images 39 min: It’s been a creditable performance so far by Feyenoord They’ve defended well and occasionally looked dangerous on the break. Are they Wolves in disguise? 36 min: Sterling’s run from left to right tears open the Feyenoord defence. He could shoot from 16 yards! But instead he taps the ball to Silva, who is even better placed. But the finish is terrible, a pea-roller into the keeper’s grateful arms! 35 min: Larsson threads a ball through to Berghuis, who embarks on a tricky run towards the City box. Then he stops, look around and picks out a run by Larsson, who’d darted into the box. Larsson takes a good first touch, works room for a shot and then curls a low shot just wide of the far post! 33 min: Sterling skitters in from the left and then, from just outside the left-hand corner of the box, bangs in a shot. Jones could probably catch it but chooses instead to punch it away. 32 min: De Bruyne spoons a cross from the left into the danger zone. Aguero strains his neck to get a good header on it, but it flies a couple of yards over. 30 min: Toure wins the ball mid-way inside the Feyenoord half, pings it into Silva and lopes forward for the return pass, which duly arrives. Then Toure feeds Aguero at the edge of the area. With his back to goal and several Feyenoord defenders well in place, Aguero knocks the ball back to Gundogan, who tries to curl it into the top corner from 25 yards - but misses by about six. 28 min: An uncharacteristically ponderous attacks breaks down because of another errant pass by Walker. He’s been out of whack so far today. 25 min: Ederson hurtles out of his box in a bid to collect a long ball. Most keepers would just hoof it clear but he tries to take a dainty touch, a yard outside his box. His touch lets him down and Boetius tries to nip in and steal the ball. Ederson, now panicking, swipes wildly at the ball .... and gets just enough of it to divert it away and avoid conceding a freekick (and red card) for catching Boetius. Feyenoord’s Jean-Paul Boetius is tackled by Ederson after a mistake by City’s keeper. Photograph: Phil Noble/Reuters 23 min: De Bruyne wins possession in midfield again. He’s getting stuck in, alright, but too precisely to get that yellow card so far. 21 min: De Bruyne wins possession mid-way inside the opposing half, then skips past one player and tries to beat another. In the ensuing challenge the ball runs loose to Aguero, who shuffles to create space for a shot from the edge of the area. But it’s hit quite gently and straight at Jones. Sergio Aguero reacts after a missed chance. Photograph: Clive Brunskill/Getty Images 19 min: Aguero races into the right-hand channel to collect a through-ball by Bernardo Silva. Then he produces a lovely cross, hooking the bouncing ball towards the far post. Sterling does well to beat a defender to it. But he can’t get it sufficiently under control to fire off a shot before being crowded out. Bernado Silva is held off by Feyenoord’s Tonny Vilhena. Photograph: Nigel Roddis/EPA 17 min: Mangala’s attempt to channel John Stones falls down as his pass from the back goes straight to Feyenoord player. 15 min: Berghuis slaloms between two City players and into the area. His low shot is deflected out for a corner by Mangala. 14 min: Walkers skips past Haps and curls over a tame cross. Jones make a meal of it, requiring two attempts to collect. 11 min: Walker eschews an easy pass to Silva, opting instead for an extravagant cross-field diagonal. But he gets it all wrong and wafts the ball into touch. Feyenoord must be happy with this start: they’ve kept City at arm’s length and, part from one superb ball by De Bruyne, haven’t come close to being penetrated. 9 min: Corner to City after a superb low cross by De Bruyne is put behind by a defender. When the corner is cleared, Danilo latches on to the breaking ball and tries a shot from long-range. He rasps a good low effort a couple of yards wide. 8 min: A dinky break by Feyenoord! They counter with speed and imagination down the left, Larsson and Berghuis exchanging clever flicks to take their team to the edge of the area. But just as Boetius looks ready to shoot, Otamendi closes him down. 6 min: City continue to monopolise possession as Feyenoord sit deep. But there’s not much zip to the home team’s play at the moment so, basically, nothing much is happening. 3 min: Feyenoord’s plan may have been attack, but that’s difficult to do without the ball. City won’t let them anywhere near it at the moment and the game has unfolded almost exclusively in the visitor’s half so far. 1 min: Feyenoord kick off, which seems to be a feat impressive enough to bring lusty cheers from their fans. The CL anthem is righteously booed by the City fans in keeping with tradition. The teams assume their places on the pitch. The stands, meanwhile,do not look full despite the presence of around 5,000 Feyenoord fans. Guardiola has been chatting to BT and explained that he omitted Kompany so as to give him a rest. He also said he suspects Feyenoord are going to be very attacking and try to run at City’s defence because their forwards are particularly good at one-on-one duels. If that turns out to be true, this could be an open and entertaining game. U17 World Cup winner Phil Foden warms up before the match. Photograph: Dave Thompson/AP “It’s not true that city don’t need to win tonight’s match,” storms JA Hopkin. “If City fail to win, and Shakhtar win at Napoli (ok, unlikely) then City can still be pipped for top spot by Shakhtar, whom we play in the last group match, and away.” True, but really it shouldn’t matter to City whether they finish second or first in this group. And there is no way they are going to lose today. “What is Guardiola thinking of by starting De Bruyne in this meaningless match?” gasps Daniel Farsley. “He should be resting him for this weekend’s big match against Huddersfield!” Well, yes. But did you know that De Bruyne is the only City player one booking away from suspension? Wouldn’t it be a heck of a thing if he picked up a yellow today and missed the even more meaningless last group match rather than a knockout tie? Preamble City: Ederson; Walker, Otamendi Mangala, Danilo; Gundogan Touré, De Bruyne; B Silva, Aguero, Sterling Subs: Bravo, Delph, D Silva, Jesus, Foden, Diaz Feyenoord: Jones; Diks, Van Beek, Tapia, Haps; Amrabat, Toornstra, Vilhena; Berghuis, Boetius, Larsson Subs: Vermeer, St Juste, Nelom, Nieuwkoop, Jorgensen, Basickoglu, Kramer Referee: I Kruzilak (Slovakia) Preamble Hello and welcome. As far as Manchester City are concerned, not much rides on this match. They are already through to the last 16 by dint of winning all four of their group matches so far, starting with that 4-0 thrashing of Feyenoord back in September. So they’re not likely to over-exert themselves today in pursuit of a victory that they do not need, other than to extend their scalding hot streak. But still, City look like they’re enjoying tearing teams apart at the moment so they’ll doubtless try to have more larks today. And any fringe players that Pep Guardiola decides to include will be keen to put forward a case for more regular action, including at centre-back. It would be quite fun, in a way, if City won today by a ridiculous score such as 12-2. That was the score by which Feyenoord beat the Icelandic side KR in the first round of the 1970 European Cup (they won the other leg 4-0), a tournament that they went on to win. They’ll never be European champions again unless they’re bought by some hedge fund or oil fiefdom. Nice one, Champions League! The best they can hope for these days is to scramble into the latter stages of the Europa League: to have any chance of doing that this season, they need to win today in Manchester. Nothing suggests that they, currently seventh in the Dutch league, are going to do that. But if City are not focused, then maybe, just maybe, we’ll be treated to a shock. 87164