NEC drew against Le Havre on Friday night in the dress rehearsal for the new season. The French team, who finished in fifteenth place in Ligue 1 last season, held NEC to a 1-1 draw.
Under the watchful eye of over four thousand supporters, NEC strung together chances in the first half. Kodai Sano had the biggest chances, but Basar Önal and Rober González also came up against the goalkeeper of the visitors from France several times from close range. Given the course of the game, it was quite a surprise that Le Havre went into the break with a lead. They owed that to a goal by Ngoura after more than half an hour of play.
What NEC failed to do before half-time, it did in the second half. It was Sami Ouaissa who equalised with his first goal in the Goffert stadium in the 57th minute. The occasional striker took full advantage of good interference from Mees Hoedemakers and slid the ball tightly into the bottom corner.
NEC can therefore, regardless of the result, look back on a great conclusion to the preparation. Next week, Champions League preliminary round participant FC Twente will come to Nijmegen. The kick-off of the first official match of the 2024-2025 football season is at 18:45!
Score progression
34. Ngoura 0-1
57. Sami Ouai 1-1
NEC line-up: Roefs; Önal (75. De Wit), Ouaissa, Sano
