PSV took full advantage of being one of only two sides in the top five, along with FC Groningen, to have a game this past weekend in the Eredivisie, comfortably beating 6th placed Roda JC 3-1 and opening the gap between them and defending champions FC Twente to four points.
The game between the league leaders and Roda at the Philips Stadion was the only one to survive the weather on Sunday, and the 33,000 fans who had braved the bitter conditions did not have long to wait for a goal as Jermain Lens turned home Dzsudzsak’s free kick after just five minutes. The home side continued to dominate but it was Roda who grabbed the next goal of the game as Anouar Hadouir hammered his free kick into the top left hand corner, leaving former Manchester City shot stopper Andreas Isaksson no chance and levelling the score at 1-1.
The score stayed at 1-1 until shortly after the break when Lens turned provider for Marcus Berg to re-instate PSV’s lead in the 53rd minute, making it 2-1. It was all PSV from then on, and fifteen minutes after retaking the lead Dzsudzsak made it 3-1 and took his tally for the season to double figures, sealing the three points and ensuring the Eindhoven based side spend Christmas at the top of the table.
The only other title chasing side in action last weekend were third placed Groningen as they could only manage a disappointing 2-2 draw away at relegation battling Excelsior. It looked like it would be plain sailing for the visitors as a seventh minute Dusan Tadic goal and an own goal from Excelsior’s Cees Paauwe saw them go in 2-0 up at half time.
However, Roland Bergkamp was brought down in the area just after the restart and Ryan Koolwijk’s well taken penalty got his side back into the game at 2-1. Dan Bovenberg grabbed a late equaliser to make it 2-2 and thus earned a well deserved and much needed point for his side.
Heerenveen’s impressive form continued with their second consecutive win by a four goal margin, beating De Graafschap 4-0. A dominant first half performance saw the hosts take a 3-0 lead in with them at half time, with goals from Viktor Elm, Filip Djuricic and Luciano Narsingh. The pace eased up during the second half, but Narsingh bagged his second and Heerenveen’s fourth of the night to claim all three points and further cement his side’s place in the Europa League play-offs.
NAC Breda managed to grab a point against visiting Vitesse despite having to play the closing stages of the game with ten men, after Tim Gilissen picked up two bookings in six minutes. Julian Jenner had given Vitesse a surprise lead after half an hour, but just before the hour mark Breda made it 1-1 through Nemanja Gudelj and that’s how it stayed.
Willem II Tilberg are still looking for their first win of their increasingly desperate season, after suffering yet another defeat away at ADO Den Haag, losing 2-1. It was two own goals that saw the undoing of the club propping up the foot of the table, first from Niek Vossebelt after just ten minutes, and then through Veli Lampi only a minute after Willem had managed to level the game with a Bart Biemens strike!
That result leaves the Tilberg side 14 points clear of safety and with an Everest sized mountain to climb in the second half the season. They may appreciate the Eredivisie’s winter break more than most, as the league now takes some time out until January 19th.