Enzo Le Fée Shines in Thrilling Victory Over AZ

Enzo Le Fée turned a nightmare into a statement performance as his late penalty sealed a hard-fought win over AZ – on a night when Robin Roefs and a stubborn back line did just as much heavy lifting.

This was not a clean, comfortable European evening. It was frantic, bruising, and at times hanging by a thread. But it was also a showcase of character.

Roefs and the back line stand up to AZ

AZ carved out some of the game’s clearest early chances, and every time danger broke loose in the box, Roefs met it head-on. He spread himself brilliantly in a one-on-one, saving with his foot when the Dutch side looked certain to score, then threw his body into a late scramble in the six-yard box to preserve the lead. An 8/10 night and the kind of goalkeeping display that wins tight games.

In front of him, Nordi Mukiele played like a man with a motor that wouldn’t quit. He surged up and down the right flank, especially in the first half, where his forward runs caused chaos and panic in AZ’s shape. He even went close himself after the break, glancing a header just wide.

Kevin Danso matched that intensity in the heart of defence. He read the game sharply, stepped in with timely blocks, and cleared his lines with authority. Twice he nearly added his name to the scoresheet – first diverting a header just wide after reacting to a wayward Granit Xhaka shot, then testing the keeper with a thumping effort from distance. Another commanding 8/10 outing.

Alongside him, Omar Alderete brought bite and bravery. He went in hard, won his duels and turned out of pressure with composure, but an early injury cut his evening short. Reinildo, pinned back more than usual by AZ’s overloads, rarely got the chance to bomb on. Instead, he dug in and defended his side of the pitch with discipline and aggression, closing down the left well.

Xhaka dictates, Sadiki grafts

For 45 minutes, this felt like Granit Xhaka’s game. From deep, the captain sprayed passes over and through the AZ press, switching play and setting the tempo. His long diagonals and clipped balls forward kept the visitors guessing. After the interval, the tone changed. AZ pushed higher, zipped the ball around him and forced him into a more reactive role. Still, his first-half control earned him a solid 7/10.

Alongside him, Noah Sadiki did the unglamorous work that made the rest possible. AZ’s movement asked constant questions, but Sadiki ran relentlessly, snapping into spaces, nicking the ball back, and disrupting attacks. It was a night of dirty work, done well.

Trai Hume had a mixed evening. When he arrived in the final third, he looked dangerous – curling one effort just wide before the break, then twice going close in quick succession in the second half: a low strike saved by the keeper’s legs and a header over from the resulting corner. Outside those flashes, he drifted out of the game.

Malick Fofana found himself stuck between the lines and the game plan. When he had the ball, he used it well enough, but too often he received it too deep or in crowded pockets, unable to properly influence the attacking flow.

Le Fée’s redemption arc

Enzo Le Fée’s night began with a groan. A loose, sloppy pass gifted AZ a golden opening and could easily have put his side behind. Roefs bailed him out.

From that moment, Le Fée played like a man determined to make amends.

He grew into the contest, then took it over. He rattled the post after a clever cutback from Wilson Isidor, then burst in behind from a Mukiele pass and forced another save. His vision sliced AZ open repeatedly: a delightful ball over the top for Brian Brobbey, another for Isidor, both begging to be finished.

The pressure he applied finally broke AZ’s resistance. Le Fée drove into the box, drew the foul, picked himself up and buried the penalty. Calm, precise, ruthless. On a night full of industry, he was the spark – a 9/10 performance and a clear Man of the Match.

Isidor runs the line, bench sees it out

Up front, Wilson Isidor worked tirelessly. He stretched AZ by darting into the channels, linked cleverly with Le Fée, and spun in behind to set up that shot against the post. When Le Fée flicked him through later, he lashed a good chance wide, a rare blot on an otherwise intelligent display.

The substitutes were asked to finish the job, not reinvent it.

Dan Ballard stepped in for the injured Alderete and immediately set about shutting doors. He blocked everything around the box, read danger early and helped lock down the closing stages.

Thomas Meunier entered for Hume and later dropped to right-back when Danso went off, handling both roles with calm assurance. Nilson Angulo brought energy down the left, always willing to run at his man, but his decision-making let him down – especially in stoppage time when he really should have buried the rebound.

Brobbey’s cameo was a tease. He barely touched the ball until added time, then suddenly came alive. A clever one-two with Le Fée almost opened AZ up before a defender intervened. Moments later he powered forward from halfway, the goal gaping, only to square across the six-yard box instead of going for glory.

Teenager Chris Rigg added bite in midfield, snapping at AZ’s heels, winning the ball and sliding sharp passes into Brobbey’s path. It was a small but mature contribution.

When the whistle went, the story belonged to Le Fée’s response, Roefs’ saves and a team that refused to buckle under AZ’s pressure. If this is the standard of resilience they can hit in tight European nights, how far can they push it when the margins get even thinner?