Senegal organized a party in the stands, even if they didn’t succeed with Frenkie De Jong’s home-made football

Stadium Al Thumama is another architectural monster which is located in the middle of Ad-Dawhah neighborhood, on the outskirts of Doha. It has a capacity of 40,000 spectators. But it looks much bigger. From outside. And also from the inside, where it was impressive to see so many empty seats. There, the Netherlands achieved their first victory in this World Cup and joined Ecuador at the top of Group A. It was thanks to saves from giant Andries Noppert and the punctual appearances of Coyd Gapko and Davy Klaasse, who scored the night’s two goals in their only two shots on target for the Euros. But the great protagonist of the evening in Qatar was Frenkie De Jong, an artisan of good football who at the age of 25 became the patron of Louis Van Gaal’s men.

It was a game played very well for a long time, with a lot of pace, without breaks and without interruptions. Even without fears for the goalkeepers up until a good part of the second half. fast transitions. However, the match was also played in the stands. And there to win despite having lost and deserved better luck were the fans of the African country.

They didn’t stop singing the entire time they were on the pitch. Even with their noise they hid the numerous empty seats that could be seen in the stands. Nothing appeased them. Not even the rival’s goals. Not even defeat. He was deafening, perhaps aided by the overly loud acoustics of the stadium.

The party had begun in the suburbs. Parking lots, including those for the press, are miles away from the stadium, as was the case at Al Bayt, site of the opening match. Here because the party was predicted to be big among the Senegalese. Especially among that group that was in charge of musicalizing the party. They sang before the match started. They sang during the 98 minutes of the match. And to that we have to add the range. But they also sang when the game was over. They didn’t much mind the shock of losing a duel where they deserved better luck. Another 27 minutes followed until they were politely asked to leave their place on the pitch. It was amazing and moving. This is the World Cup.

The Dutch, on the other hand, only boiled over when their team approached Edouard Mendy’s goal, which rarely happened on a Dohan night. Stop it. It is that Louis Van Gaal’s team kicked three times between 2.44 meters and 7.22 meters from the rival goal -two in the same play- and scored two goals. Thus, they settled at the top of Group A together with Ecuador.

Lack of strength does not mean that the orange team played well, beyond the fact that in the second part there was a moment in which he had fun. And much of the good that has happened is due to the work and grace of De Jong, a boy who projects football in high fidelity.

He appears to be slow to patrol the courthouse, but is always in the area. He always shows up in the right place to become commander of the advances and manage Holland’s time. It even seems that the clock ticks more slowly when the ball is close to you. He moves in slow motion, but makes the game much faster than the rest.

Senegal’s best moment came when De Jong made a couple of mistakes already in the second half: he had already made a mistake trying to start from low in the first half. However, it was only for an instant. And it became clear when the crack of Barcelonaat 39 of the complement, received from Memphis Depay, he trampled it with his sole and put in a cross on the penalty for Cody Gapko’s entry, who anticipated Mendy and made his round debut in the World Cup. He was also the first target shot by the Europeans.

From that moment on, in the remaining 14 minutes – counting the eight added time -, the blonde coached at Ajax was back in control of the ball so time passed and the Netherlands rounded up an important initial victory. Amidst all the noise, De Jong brought clarity and fidelity to football.

Special delivery