NEC Faces Heavy Defeat Against Juventus in Europa League

NEC’s Europa League return lasted all of a few painful minutes before reality bit hard in Turin. By the end, Dick Schreuder’s team had been taken apart, 5-0, by a Juventus side that barely needed to get out of third gear.

It was a night that started with a selection twist and quickly turned into damage limitation.

Early chaos, early punishment

With Gonzalo Crettaz suspended, Nikolas Polster was handed the gloves for NEC, protected by a side full of familiar experience: Tjaronn Chery, Dusan Tadic, Bryan Linssen. On the other bench, Teun Koopmeiners had to wait for his chance, named among the Juventus substitutes.

Any hope NEC had of easing themselves into the game vanished almost instantly.

After just three minutes, Federico Gatti thought he had fired Juventus ahead, only for his effort to be ruled out for a foul on Polster. A small reprieve. It didn’t last.

Juventus smelled uncertainty and pounced. Nicolás González burst in behind, Polster rushed out and misjudged everything, completely missing the ball. González simply rolled it into an empty net. 1-0, and NEC were already wobbling.

The pressure only intensified.

Polster briefly redeemed himself with a sharp save from a Nick Woltemade header, but the next strike left him helpless. Kerim Alajbegovic stepped up from distance and ripped a long-range rocket into the net for 2-0. NEC were being pinned back, and the scoreline finally reflected it.

Then came the third blow. Almugera Kabar mistimed a challenge on González inside the area, Woltemade took responsibility from the spot and buried the penalty. 3-0, and still inside the first half.

Injury blow and flickers of resistance

Between Juventus’ second and third goals, Schreuder’s evening took another turn for the worse. Clement Bischoff pulled up with a hamstring problem and had to be replaced by Dennis Geiger, robbing NEC of a key piece in midfield just as the game was running away from them.

To their credit, NEC did not completely fold.

Before the break, they finally forced Kamil Grabara into action. Noé Lebreton tested the Juventus goalkeeper, Kabar also saw an effort blocked, and Linssen lashed another chance over the bar. Half-chances, nothing more, but at least signs of life after a brutal opening spell.

Juventus, though, never looked rattled. They controlled the tempo, picked their moments, and carried a constant threat whenever they accelerated.

Second half drifts, then Juventus finish the job

The restart brought a lull. Juventus seemed satisfied with their cushion, content to manage the game rather than chase more goals. NEC saw more of the ball but rarely did anything sharp with it.

Geiger, on as that early substitute, came closest with a speculative long-range strike, but Grabara watched most of NEC’s efforts from a safe distance. The Italian side kept them at arm’s length, closing spaces and waiting.

Then, as legs tired and gaps opened, Juventus struck again.

In the final quarter of an hour, Randal Kolo Muani came to life. First, he surged into the box and cut the ball back perfectly for Zeki Çelik, who swept home for 4-0. NEC’s resistance, such as it was, finally broke.

Moments later, Kolo Muani helped himself. Slipped through on goal, he rounded the advancing Polster with ease and tapped into the empty net for 5-0. No drama, no doubt. Just a ruthless finish to a one-sided night.

The whistle eventually brought mercy for NEC, but not much comfort. A bruising 5-0 defeat in Turin leaves Schreuder’s side with questions to answer and a mountain to climb in this Europa League campaign.