Differdange 03 2-1 FC Utrecht
Europa League 2nd Qualifying Round
Stade Josy Barthel - Att 2,591
18 July 2013
Should you ever find yourself following a team in the early qualifying rounds of the Europa League, you need to hope that the draw is kind to you given how early in the season the games take place. Ideally you are looking for a team from a country that does not have a summer league, is not half way to China and has reasonable infrastructure. It is also a massive help if the team is not a former 'European Giant' such as Red Star Belgrade. Given the draw paired FC Utrecht with either Differdange 03 from Luxembourg or Laci from Albania, our preference was clear and, following a 3-1 aggregate win for Differdange in the first qualifying round, our wish of a trip to Luxembourg came true.
Following on from that particular piece of good news, I was fortunate not only to get a ticket with the away supporters, but also a lift the 300km to the Grand Duchy. All this positive news was somewhat tainted by the news that the game was to be switched from the 2,400 home of our hosts to the more 'roomier' confines of the 8,000 capacity national stadium in the unoriginally named capital, Luxembourg City. Tainted in as much as I had already been to the stadium some 20 years earlier (Luxembourg v Hungary in a friendly). But the fact is, the initial batch of away tickets (1,000) were sold so quickly that it was the sensible decision and, as it turned out, without this switch I would not have had a ticket in any case.
And so the thick end of 2,000 Dutch fans descended on the tiny country one Thursday in mid July. By the time we arrived it was clear the sun and the beer was taking its toll, but spirits were high and the police, whilst visible in big numbers, appeared relaxed. Security entering the stadium was tight. My pack of raisin biscuits were confiscated as they were 'prohibited' (presumably to ensure we feasted on the sausages on sale in the ground) but fear not, that was my dummy packet, carried to put the security off; the main pack made it in!
The ground had changed little in 20 years. An athletics stadium with cover over the one 'main' side, the only obvious change was the colour of the track which, on my prior visit was the traditional off-red (I know because I walked round it!). Utrecht had been given a much greater area in the ground to the tickets allocated. I presume this was to allow for ticketless fans. However, within 60 seconds it was clear that this plan had not worked as, with Utrecht scoring, half the main stand rose to their feet cheering!.
Still, no harm done, and with that early Utrecht lead we could sit back and count the goals, right? Wrong! On the way down my driver and good friend Albert was telling me how Differdange had this one decent player Omar Er Rafik , 27 year old Moroccan attacker. The website was full of how FC Utrecht had to watch this guy. Well watch him they did, as he scored in each half to give the home side a shock, if thoroughly deserved 2-1 win.
At the end of the game the away fans jeered their own team, before getting the home side to do that hand wavy thing that they do alot in Holland and Germany. The home players appeared to be genuinely grateful for this show of appreciation.
And so the tie moves back to Holland, where I imagine that coach Wouters will be playing a full strength team and taking the game far more seriously than it appears he took this one.
Following on from that particular piece of good news, I was fortunate not only to get a ticket with the away supporters, but also a lift the 300km to the Grand Duchy. All this positive news was somewhat tainted by the news that the game was to be switched from the 2,400 home of our hosts to the more 'roomier' confines of the 8,000 capacity national stadium in the unoriginally named capital, Luxembourg City. Tainted in as much as I had already been to the stadium some 20 years earlier (Luxembourg v Hungary in a friendly). But the fact is, the initial batch of away tickets (1,000) were sold so quickly that it was the sensible decision and, as it turned out, without this switch I would not have had a ticket in any case.
And so the thick end of 2,000 Dutch fans descended on the tiny country one Thursday in mid July. By the time we arrived it was clear the sun and the beer was taking its toll, but spirits were high and the police, whilst visible in big numbers, appeared relaxed. Security entering the stadium was tight. My pack of raisin biscuits were confiscated as they were 'prohibited' (presumably to ensure we feasted on the sausages on sale in the ground) but fear not, that was my dummy packet, carried to put the security off; the main pack made it in!
The ground had changed little in 20 years. An athletics stadium with cover over the one 'main' side, the only obvious change was the colour of the track which, on my prior visit was the traditional off-red (I know because I walked round it!). Utrecht had been given a much greater area in the ground to the tickets allocated. I presume this was to allow for ticketless fans. However, within 60 seconds it was clear that this plan had not worked as, with Utrecht scoring, half the main stand rose to their feet cheering!.
Still, no harm done, and with that early Utrecht lead we could sit back and count the goals, right? Wrong! On the way down my driver and good friend Albert was telling me how Differdange had this one decent player Omar Er Rafik , 27 year old Moroccan attacker. The website was full of how FC Utrecht had to watch this guy. Well watch him they did, as he scored in each half to give the home side a shock, if thoroughly deserved 2-1 win.
At the end of the game the away fans jeered their own team, before getting the home side to do that hand wavy thing that they do alot in Holland and Germany. The home players appeared to be genuinely grateful for this show of appreciation.
And so the tie moves back to Holland, where I imagine that coach Wouters will be playing a full strength team and taking the game far more seriously than it appears he took this one.