Perfect PSV Eindhoven on unprecedented run in European football
By this point in the season it’s a rare thing indeed for a team to be unbeaten.
With most of Europe’s domestic leagues kicking off in August, and some in July, even reaching November without a loss is remarkable. Not many make it to October, but December? Almost unheard of.
Bayer Leverkusen, through 12 Bundesliga rounds, is one of the few exceptions, although Borussia Dortmund will look to break the spell on Sunday (10:30 a.m., DAZN). Celtic, less atypically, have yet to be defeated in the Scottish Premiership and should extend their streak at St. Johnstone this weekend.
Patrick Post / The Associated Press files
PSV Eindhoven’s Luuk de Jong and his teammates have plenty to celebrate as the club is yet to drop a point this season.
Kosovo’s Ballkani have won 11 and drawn two of their 13 matches this term, and Armenian Premier League leaders Pyuntik have won 14 and drawn four of 18.
Then there’s PSV Eindhoven.
With more than a third of the schedule played, they’re not only still undefeated but have also yet to draw — to drop a single point — in what is shaping up to be a quite extraordinary campaign. Naturally, their 100 per cent record has them perched atop the Eredivisie, but earlier this week they sealed qualification to the knockout stages of the Champions League as well.
“Bizarre, really bizarre,” reflected PSV manager Peter Bosz when interviewed by Dutch television on Wednesday. He might as well have been summarizing his team’s incredible performances to date, but in the moment he was speaking to the evening’s astonishing comeback away to Sevilla.
Down 1-0 at the break and 2-0 shortly after the restart, the Boeren finally got a foothold in the match through substitute Ismael Salibari’s tally in the 68th minute, and in the 88th Nemanja Gudelj’s own goal set up a dramatic conclusion at Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan. Two minutes into stoppage time, United States international Ricardo Pepi won it for the guests with his first Champions League goal.
“It was a wonderful moment for me and the team,” remarked the 20-year-old, also a second-half substitution. Bosz acknowledged his tactical changes had worked out well, but captain Luuk de Jong went a step further in crediting the entire squad with demolishing expectations this semester, stating, “We are clearly not doing it with 11 people.”
Not by a long shot.
Twenty PSV players have contributed at least 100 minutes of Eredivisie action in 2023-24, and, even more impressively, 10 have played 700 or more. Offensively, de Jong’s 12 goals paces the group, but six of his teammates have also scored at least four times.
On the defensive side of the ball, centre-backs Andre Ramalho and Olivier Boscagli rarely present goalkeeper Walter Benitez with so much as a shot to save, while fullbacks Jordan Teze and Sergino Dest offer additional attacking options from the flanks. PSV has conceded a paltry five goals in the Netherlands’ top flight; Teze and Dest have combined for five assists.
These are eye-popping statistics, which makes the surprise of it all that much more rewarding. Because this roster isn’t a who’s who of Dutch voetbal stars. Rather, it’s a mish-mash of a number of veterans, a few prospects and a whole lot of reclamation projects, each of them brought by Bosz into a unified, effective whole.
Regarding the latter category, a one-time blue-chipper, now 25, has been earning high praise from a retired Netherlands international, World Cup runner-up and two-time title winner with rival club Ajax.
An Eredivisie Talent of the Month back in the winter of 2020, midfielder Joey Veerman never reached his potential at former employers Heerenveen, and it wasn’t until earlier this calendar year that he made enough of an impression to earn a call-up to the national team. Suddenly, in his eighth professional season, he is now the best playmaker in the country.
Rafael van der Vaart thinks so, anyway.
In conversation with Studio Voetbal, the ex-Ajax, Hamburg and Real Madrid midfielder observed that Veerman was “blossoming again,” that “when he gets to pass, he is the very best in the whole of the Netherlands.”
Noa Lang, 24 and, like van der Vaart, previously of Ajax, is similarly thriving in this PSV Eindhoven side. So, too, is Guus Til, who flattered to deceive at AZ Alkmaar before moving to Spartak Moscow, from which he was loaned first to Freiburg and then Feyenoord.
Incidentally, it’s against Feyenoord that PSV will next put their perfect record on the line.
Reigning Eredivisie champions, the Rotterdam outfit will host the current leaders on Sunday (5:00 a.m., FuboTV) in a showdown with massive title implications. They’ve also been excelling this season, with 10 wins out of 13. Inflict a first defeat on PSV and they’ll pull within four points of top spot. A loss, however, will see the gap widen to 10.
“I think (PSV) are a championship team,” said van der Vaart. “If they win, it will be over.”
And it’s barely December.
Forget rare. What PSV ia doing could end up being unprecedented.
X @JerradPeters
Credit: Perfect PSV Eindhoven on unprecedented run in European football
