Latest news with #PascalBosschaart
The Guardian
20-02-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Champions League review: Brugge rise as Italians and Americans stumble
Feyenoord These are high times for Dutch football, though the country's traditional power, Ajax, can only watch from the Europa League as Feyenoord and PSV downed Italian giants. At the San Siro, Feyenoord were able to ride out their former star Santiago Giménez scoring an opening-minute goal and performing a non-celebration celebration. Pascal Bosschaart continues as Feyenoord's caretaker manager but whatever happens, he'll always have Milan, and this tactical triumph. Eighteen-year-old Zépiqueno Redmond led the attack and was replaced by Julián Carranza, who would score the crucial equaliser. It ended 1-1 on the night and Feyenoord went through 2-1 on aggregate; they will face either Inter or Arsenal when Friday's draw is made. Club Brugge If Belgium's golden generation of emigres is fading, the resurgence of the country's club game has been most welcome. The 1978 European Cup finalists have a proud history and fervent support. But they are the smallest team left in the draw, although they are fully deserving of their place after beating the reigning Europa League champions, Atalanta. Bergamo was supposed to be where Brugge's dream died. Simon Mignolet, once of Liverpool, saved a penalty but the Belgians' were already 5-2 up in the tie. Brugge's first win in Italy since 2003 was achieved thanks to a mix of veterans and players who may help form the next Belgian generation of stars. Swiss midfielder Ardon Jashari was outstanding too. Benfica Another big name from the competition's days as the European Cup, Benfica rode out the storm against a dangerous, determined Monaco. Vangelis Pavlidis notched his seventh goal in the competition this season from the penalty spot having set up Kerem Aktürkoğlu for the opening goal. With the tie level, Orkun Kökçü's control and finish came to the rescue, as he charged in from midfield to score the winner in a tie that ended 4-3 on aggregate. He twanged a hamstring, too in the process of celebrating. Bruno Lage's team have the toughest possible draw in the next round – either Barcelona or Liverpool await – but in Pavlidis and their attacking play, they can be a threat to both teams. Manchester City 'Nothing is eternal,' said Pep Guardiola, though he had perhaps forgotten Real Madrid's stranglehold on this competition, and their continuing ability to wound him. 'We have been extraordinarily extraordinary in the past, but not any more,' he continued but in such a sound defeat, one preluded by City's manager claiming his team had just a '1%' chance of progressing, there must be disappointment. If this is the end of the cycle, then the Abu Dhabi-Catalan partnership yielded just one Champions League title, when many more were possible. This was a meek surrender unrecognisable from much of City's Guardiola era. Now he must decide whether he gets to lead the club's next cycle. Milan A disastrous week for Serie A. Inter are the last men standing after Milan, Atalanta and Juventus crashed out to teams from far less wealthy leagues. Theo Hernández's red card for two bookable offences, the second a speculative dive that was correctly ruled as simulation, turned Milan's tie with Feyenoord in the Dutch team's favour. After Giménez scored early, Milan's four-man attack faded, with Rafael Leão and João Félix giving enigmatic performances and Christian Pulisic well short of his usual drive. Sérgio Conceição threw everything at the Rotterdam team, taking off both Pulisic and Yunus Musah in search of an answer, but Milan's attacking was substandard. 'It's a big defeat for me,' said the Milan coach. 'I am responsible for this defeat. We should have been better on a mental level.' Juventus If this week was bad for Serie A, a real battering to their coefficient chance of having five participants in next season's group stage, it was almost as bad for the US contingent. Celtic's Cameron Carter-Vickers joined the throng after Bayern Munich's last-minute equaliser settled the tie in the Germans' favour. Timothy Weah was on the scoresheet for Juventus in Eindhoven, his goal thumped from the edge of the box, but PSV struck back quickly and eventually progressed thanks to a winner from Ryan Flamingo. Weah and Weston McKennie exited. PSV's Richy Ledezma, with just one cap for the USMNT, could celebrate, while his teammates and compatriots, Sergiño Dest, Ricardo Pepi and Malik Tillman, all absent through injury. Sign up to Soccer with Jonathan Wilson Jonathan Wilson brings expert analysis on the biggest stories from European soccer after newsletter promotion Kylian Mbappé, Real Madrid Who doubted that Mbappé could succeed at Real? Those who did perhaps forgot the depth of his talent and self-belief. Sure, Manchester City's defence could hardly have been more accommodating, but he grabbed the occasion with both hands. Credit Carlo Ancelotti, ever the arch strategist, who has found a way to assimilate Mbappé and still get full use of Rodrygo and Vinícius Júnior. How? An old-style 4-4-2, with Jude Bellingham off the left. 'I wanted to define an era, to make history at Real Madrid,' Mbappé said afterwards, and the first target is winning the Champions League. Julián Carranza, Feyenoord Carranza was tasked with succeeding Giménez at De Kuip. A bout of illness meant he was not fit enough to start the second leg at San Siro, but he eventually had his say as a substitute. Once of Inter Miami and Philadelphia Union, he was bought with the knowledge that Giménez would be sold. His first ever Champions League goal knocked out Giménez's new club – a decent start, then, towards replacing the Mexican. Following a beauty of a cross from the on-loan Wolves defender Hugo Bueno, Carranza's goal was right out of the Giménez playbook. Chemsdine Talbi, Club Brugge The 19-year-old grabbed two goals to end Atalanta's hopes, becoming the youngest Belgian to score in the Champions League knockouts. Though, being a dual national, he may still declare for Morocco, who host the Africa Cup of Nations in 2026. If elite-clubs already know all about Talbi, his command of the tie with Atalanta will have only raised interest. He's confident, too. 'I am not surprised how well we played,' he said. 'We know what we can do.' Lille or Aston Villa will get the chance in the next round to see his talents at close hand.
Reuters
18-02-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
Feyenoord boss proud after tough period ends with Champions League advance
Feb 18 (Reuters) - Feyenoord interim boss Pascal Bosschaart was full of praise for his team's character, after recent upheaval at the club, when they came back from conceding an early goal to draw at AC Milan on Tuesday and reach the Champions League last 16. The Dutch club's preparations for last week's first leg were far from ideal when Feyenoord sacked Brian Priske two days before the playoff game, but Bosschaart led them to a 1-0 win at home and they finished off the job at the San Siro. "This says about the team that they have character. I think that's what I'm most proud of," Bosschaart told Ziggo Sport. "You have to remember that they come from a very difficult phase, have received a lot of criticism, a change of coach, and then an unknown person comes in front of the group who occasionally throws in some empty slogans. "That is a very difficult phase for them but I do think we are very clear, very transparent and very honest and this group responds very well to it, so I am proud of it." Bosschaart's side could not have had a worse start in Milan, when former player Santiago Gimenez put the hosts ahead in the opening minute, but they fought back in the second half, after Milan had Theo Hernandez sent off. "If you concede a goal within minutes, the plan you wanted to execute will be different again," Bosschaart said. "Everyone will now say that we took the upper hand after the red card but I also thought in the first half that we played quite well. Only after the red card it might be a little easier." Feyenoord could return to the San Siro in the next round, where they will face either Inter Milan or Arsenal, but for now Bosschaart needs to let their achievement sink in. "It's beautiful. We are one round further, so very special," Bosschaart said. "It's fantastic but I have to say, it hasn't really landed with me yet."
The Guardian
13-02-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Champions League review: a fired up Vinícius Júnior and McKennie's screamer
Feyenoord Just two days after the dismissal of Brian Priske for 'inconsistent results and a lack of chemistry', and the installation of Pascal Bosschaart as caretaker manager, Feyenoord pulled off a handy first-leg victory over Milan. This season, the Dutch side's home ground De Kuip has seen its best Champions League nights in decades and that trend continued as Milan, who included former Feyenoord hero Santiago Giménez in their lineup, were beaten 1-0. This was Feyenoord's first knockout stage win at this level since defeating Coleraine in the 1974-75 European Cup. Igor Paixão's early goal against Milan owed much to poor goalkeeping from Mike Maignan but the Brazilian was forever in the vanguard of his team's attacks. Will Bosschaart be in charge for the second leg? Erik ten Hag has been linked with the vacancy. Borussia Dortmund Another club finding success under fresh management were Dortmund, though Niko Kovač, once of Bayern Munich, and recently sacked by Wolfsburg, has many miles on the clock. Sporting, themselves on a third manager of the season, were given a 3-0 home pounding by a team belying their Bundesliga form. Pascal Gross, beloved at Brighton, less productive in Westphalia, scored his first Dortmund goal on a night when Serhou Guirassy scored and supplied an assist, with Julian Brandt also setting up two goals. Gio Reyna had to sit out the night on the bench. As was the case last season, the Champions League continues to be BVB's shelter from Bundesliga disappointments. Club Brugge If the competition's expansion was supposed to allow more light on to the continent's lesser leagues then the Belgian club have helped fulfill that promise. Atalanta were beaten 2-1 in Bruges, and if last season's Europa League winners have every right to complain about the penalty for Brugge's second goal, Nicky Hayen's team had fought for every ball to get to that point. They can play, too. As the likes of Celtic, Aston Villa, Juventus and Manchester City found out in the group stage, Brugge are no pushovers. Brugge may, though, fear a second leg in Bergamo. Atalanta were enraged by that late penalty, awarded after Isak Hien barely grazed Gustaf Nilsson's nose with his trailing arm. Manchester City So much is coming back to haunt City at the moment, not least Real Madrid, who were exultant 3-2 winners in Manchester on Tuesday night. Oh, for a recording of the conversations between Pep Guardiola and right-hand man Juanma Lillo as things fall apart. The song remains the same at City: Erling Haaland gave one of his best performances but still didn't touch the ball enough as those around him continued to creak with age and overwork. Injury struck Jack Grealish and Manuel Akanji when both had been playing well. A recurrent theme of the season is talent City once shed coming good elsewhere and Brahim Díaz, never remotely a first-team prospect in Manchester, grabbed Real's equaliser and performed that rather unnecessary non-celebration celebration. Panic and doom have set in at the Etihad: City spent $223m in January and yet Guardiola didn't trust any new signing to start. Milan Considering the amount of business Milan did in January, it's understandable that Sérgio Conceição's team looked less than cohesive in Rotterdam. Kyle Walker, already sounding like a team leader, spoke afterwards: 'If we don't score goals it's because we have to attack better as a team, we have to attack and defend all together.' A trio of Christian Pulisic, Rafael Leao and João Félix behind Giménez has potential to be thrilling but also infuriating. Pulisic lasted just 60 minutes, and Leao and Félix lived up their mercurial reputations. 'Matches definitely become easier if you win duels,' said an unimpressed Conceição. Much better must come at San Siro. Brest The darlings of the group stage were granted the worst possible knockout draw in the form of Paris Saint-Germain, who were easy 3-0 winners at Brest. PSG's domestic supremacy was transferred to the continental stage as two-goal Ousmane Dembélé took his scoring feats to 18 in his last 10 appearances. Brest's Éric Roy, who has emerged as one of the coaches of the season, entered the world of Gallic existentialism when explaining his team's defeat: 'If I can't fault my team much in terms of spirit and desire to do things, we lacked realism. From that point on, you can't exist against a great team.' Too many risks were taken with an attacking style Roy all but admitted would not have been used in Ligue 1. 'It seems like mission impossible,' he said of the second leg. Weston McKennie (Juventus) As for goals of the week, look no further than McKennie's thump from the edge of the penalty area that started the scoring for Juve in their 2-1 defeat of PSV. A new Juve are taking shape and McKennie was playing in a high-press behind Randal Kolo Muani, the PSG loanee. Meanwhile, Timothy Weah was at full-back opposite Englishman Lloyd Kelly. Thiago Motta took a while to warm to McKennie but he has become a first-choice pick. The American modestly described his goal as 'lucky,' adding: 'My role is not important, I work for the team.' Vinícius Júnior (Real Madrid) When will clubs learn? City fans' tifo mocking Vini losing out to Rodri in the Ballon d'Or appeared only to inspire the player who could actually play a part in the game. As City's midfield continued to collapse without Rodri, Vinícius was not at his best – Rodrygo probably played better – but was still decisive. His shot was blocked for Díaz's equaliser, and his reading of Ederson's charge set up Jude Bellingham for that tapped-in winner. 'Whenever the opposing fans do things like that they give me more strength,' he said. City fans were left to 'Stop Crying Your Heart Out' as the Oasis-inspired banner had said. Michael Olise (Bayern Munich) Rivalling McKennie's goal for spectacle was Olise's effort on half-time at Celtic Park. Those who watched Olise in his Crystal Palace days will know the type, the cut inside and the thrash of the left foot. Olise is building a body of work for Bayern, and that goal, coming after a half in which Bayern weathered the expected Celtic storm but could not find a way through, will help him. The standards he must reach are high – those of Arjen Robben and Franck Ribéry – but he may well have the talent to get there. His fifth goal in this season's Champions League already outstrips compatriot Ribéry's campaign-best of four.
Reuters
13-02-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
Feyenoord coaching switch has positive impact on Champions League tie
ROTTERDAM, Netherlands, Feb 13 (Reuters) - Feyenoord overcame a sudden change of coach to beat AC Milan in the Champions League on Wednesday, delivering for Pascal Bosschaart a dream start in charge of the Dutch club. Bosschaart was asked to take over the side some 48 hours before the knockout phase playoff tie at a raucous De Kuip, where a third minute goal from Igor Paixao handed the hosts a slender 1-0 victory. Feyenoord fired coach Brian Priske on Monday after a run of poor form but the impact turned out to be minimal and the transition smooth. "I don't dream very often, but this is a scenario you hope for," Bosschaart admitted after being moved up from his job in charge of Feyenoord's under-21 side. "The things the staff planned worked out and if I was also able to add my own touch, it feels really good." "This was a team effort. We have to compliment everyone. We defended incredibly well and had an attacking plan with the wingers.' Feyenoord profited from a goalkeeping howler as Paixao's speculative effort bounced over Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan. But they had more chances roared on in the rain by a passionate crowd. "The boys have also played some great matches before with fight and passion. The only thing you have to do is take away the pressure and give the boys confidence. We succeeded in doing that, but it is not me who must take the credit," Bosschaart added. He said the 1-0 win was a first step. 'We are by no means safe, and we could have won the game 2-0. But we are in a good scenario,' he told reporters. Captain Quinten Timber hopes to recover for Tuesday's return in Milan after a clumsy fall saw him depart 15 minutes from the end with a sore knee. "Initially after the fall, it was OK but then it got a bit stiff. I hope it's not too bad."
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Pascal Bosschaart appointed as temporary Feyenoord coach ahead of Champions League match
ROTTERDAM, Netherlands (AP) — Dutch club Feyenoord has appointed former player Pascal Bosschaart as interim coach on the eve of a Champions League playoff against AC Milan. Bosschaart is replacing Brian Priske, who was fired on Monday, with Feyenoord citing 'inconsistent results and a lack of chemistry' as the main reasons for his removal. Bosschaart, who played as a defender for Feyenoord from 2004-06, oversaw the team's training for the first time on Tuesday. Feyenoord stands fifth in the domestic league, 12 points behind leader Ajax. The Dutch side hosts AC Milan on Wednesday in the first leg of the playoffs. ___ More AP soccer: The Associated Press
