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"We're beginning to look like Fortis"
Sjoerd Mossou
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Thursday 02 October 2008
As if it all isn't worrisome enough
for Feyenoord the aircraft of Lithuanian Airlines starts
to rock heavily halfway between Rotterdam and Sweden.
"We're beginning to look
like Fortis," one of the club's business partners
in the back of the plane mumbles.
"A little longer and we'll
all go down."
Tempting irony on the way to Boras,
the Swedish commuter town where Feyenoord are to play
Kalmar FF in the UEFA Cup first round on Thursday night.
The Rotterdam club will need a
busload of youth players to try and turn around a 1-0
defeat from the first leg, main sponsor Fortis Bank
are in a deep crisis and the plane to Sweden has been
delivered by some dodgy Eastern European airliner.
The state of Feyenoord is beginning
to take on an unreal shape.
Shortly before the departure to
Sweden first keeper Henk Timmer and forward Jon Dahl
Tomasson dropped out, to become numbers 10 and 11 on
the list of injured players.
Team manager Bas van Noortwijk
had to move heaven and earth to put 18 players on the
right UEFA list.
Available players could only be
found in the reserves and in the youth squad.
Players like Kostas Lamprou, a
17-year-old keeper from the highest youth team.
The young Greek will be on the
bench tonight because third goal keeper Darley Ramon
Torres also dropped out injured.
Coach Gertjan Verbeek had to complete
his squad with three teenagers (Kermit Erasmus, Kevin
Wattamaleo, Michal Janota) and the only just recovered
Karim El Ahmadi.
It's hard to find any bright spots
at Feyenoord.
The last five away matches were
all lost.
In each one they conceded three
goals, like they did during the start of the new season
at Heracles (3-1) and FC Groningen (3-1).
Tonight the team need to score
at least two to qualify for the group stage of the UEFA
Cup.
The game is financially crucial
to the club.
It was estimated that the club
reached the group stages, so losing tonight means a
deficit of 1 million euro, says financial director Onno
Jacobs.
That's a fortune for a club who
don't have any money at the moment.
Still coach Gertjan Verbeek refuses
to be led by doom or excuses: "In spite of all
the setbacks this Feyenoord have shown they are able
to straighten their backs. We showed it against Ajax
and also against FC Groningen when we were down to 10.
That is why I believe in our chances. For Kalmar 1-0
is also an awkward score. Will they defend or go on
the offensive? Whereas our mission is simple: we most
attack and have nothing to lose."
Verbeek was happy his team made
it through the final training on the artificial grass
unscathed.
Kalmar play in Boras because their
own stadium - 280 kilometers away - does not meet the
UEFA requirements.
"So in fact Kalmar are playing
an away match as well," Verbeek says.
"Let's see how they deal with
that."
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