Today the return of the match against FC Groningen O18 from a few weeks ago was on the program.
Coaches Ferdi Vierklau and Ruud Heus were very concerned about bringing this match to a winning end. After all, the schedule of the other teams in the competition is no exception. And who knows, there might be a surprising (read: favorable for FC Utrecht O18) result this day.
Well, both men cannot be denied foresight, because the 4-0 victory over the Groningen team and the 0-3 loss of PSV O18 against Ajax O18 actually caused the Utrecht team to rise one place in the rankings. In fact, a 0-0 draw between AZ O18 and Willem II O18 also ensured that the North Hollanders lost 2 points. The difference with them is now 2 points, with one match less played for the Utrecht team. And PSV, Ajax (2x) and AZ will be the opponents of the Utrecht team in the last 4 competition matches in the coming weeks. That will be an exciting final series!
But this afternoon things did not go smoothly in Utrecht. Although the match mainly took place in the opponent’s half, it took almost the entire first act before the score could be opened. FC Groningen O18 played well and FC Utrecht O18 wanted too much, which sometimes caused a lack of consultation. Only in minute 40 did Rafik el Arguioui manage to crack the Groningers for the first time. His action was a wonderful one and his shot ended up in the roof of the goal. Halftime score 1-0.
In the second act the home team picked up the thread again and that resulted in the same game pattern. Kelechi Idegwu, who came on for Fabian Troost, doubled the score in the 66th minute on a pass from Rafik el Arguioui. And Amir Saleh finally broke the Groningen resistance in the 72nd minute, this time on a pass from Gustav Arcos Sundqvist. Rafik el Arguioui made the final score 4-0 through a penalty kick (handball) in the 85th minute.
Due to this victory and as a result of the other results, the home team switched positions in the rankings with PSV O18, next Tuesday’s opponent in Eindhoven, and is now in 4th place. Willem II O18 and FC Groningen O18 have been eliminated since today and are playing after the summer break in Division 2. It is still unclear who will be promoted from Division 2 to Division 1: there are currently 3 leaders with 18 points and 2 chasers with 16 points. So it can still go either way.
FC Utrecht O18 – FC Groningen O18 4-0
1-0 40. Rafik el Arguioui
2-0 62. Kelechi Idegwu
3-0 72. Amir Saleh
4-0 85. Rafik el Arguioui (P)
FC Utrecht O18
Mees Eppink, Massien Ghaddari (78. Jahlani Fonteni), Per Kloosterboer, Torben Bos, Viggo Plantinga (69. Giordinelo Meulens), Hylke van der Mast (69. Jessey Sneijder), Amir Saleh, Nordin Bukala, Fabian Troost (46. Kelechi Idegwu), Rafik el Arguioui, Gustav Arcos Sundqvist (80. Elisha Ghartey).
