Experts Say – PSV Eindhoven vs Espérance de Tunis

Mark Tompkins – Al Kass Analyst

It was quite a strong breeze blowing on the field today. Espérance managed to get their first ball into the box in the first 10 minutes. It was a slow-motion goal by Oussama Gurbouj; he managed to get the ball across, and it just rolled through the corner and into the box.

There was good effort from Sidibe; he was working really hard and creating a lot of chances for PSV. They scored their first goal, with just 9 minutes for halftime to come to an end. There were no clear-cut chances for both teams after that equalizing goal.

There was a good pressure from both sides in the beginning of the second half. These young players had a winning mentality at such a young age. Gurbouj was looking very strong upfront, but he was pretty much left isolated up there; Thomas was also working hard in midfield to keep Espérance under pressure.

There was nothing to split these teams, as the full time whistle went off, and then the penalty shoot-outs were up. It was real battleground for 90 minutes, and the Dutch side won the seventh place in this tournament.

Nick Summerbee – Al Kass Analyst

It was a lively start from Espérance today. I was not happy at all with how PSV were conducting themselves; it was very unlikely of them to not get a hold of the ball at all. At this stage you had got to be mentally tuned up, or it could turn into a “long gone” afternoon for you. It was all about the experience of the game, for these players.

The Dutch team took many shots, but they were not delivered properly into the box. They were back in the game with Mohamed’s goal, with few minutes to go to halftime. What a strike that was! It was a very difficult goal and a great challenge. Mohamed was using his pace, and Jebali just could not keep the ball out in time.

Ten minutes into the second half, and it was still 1-1. It was beginning to look like a tight situation, and Sidibe was causing unnecessary problems in this half. It was the second time we saw that from him, and it was something we didn’t want to see at this level. He obviously has so much more to learn.

Espérance were sending all their players up forward in the last minute. Time was running out, and one of the sides really had to do something, if they really wanted to win this game. In the second half, this match really looked like it was going to end up in penalties.