Willem II returns to the Eredivisie after an absence of two seasons. Peter Maes’ team drew 1-1 against FC Dordrecht on Friday evening and leaves the Kitchen Champion Division behind.
© Pro Shots
Willem II has been at the top of the second level of the Netherlands for months and knew on Friday that a point against Dordrecht was enough to achieve promotion on its own. The visitors started the game at De Krommedijk energetically and had the first chances through striker Jeredy Hilterman. He punctured the ball on his first attempt.
© Pro Shots
There seemed to be no problem for Willem II, but after more than 27 minutes they fell behind out of nowhere. Via a low corner, the ball reached Shiloh ‘t Zand, who made it 1-0 with a placed shot from the second line. Willem II was taken aback for a moment and moments later Joshua Smits prevented the lightning-fast Dylan Mbayo from making it 2-0.
After this difficult phase, Willem II took back control of the match. This did not lead to serious opportunities in the last fifteen minutes of the first half. Willem II therefore rested behind and resumed its hunt for the equalizer after the interruption.
Missed opportunities Hilterman
Hilterman scored the score at 1-1 after four minutes. However, just as he was about to shoot, Ruben Kluivert intervened. Immediately afterwards another opportunity followed for Hilterman, who now shot straight at Luca Plogmann. On the other side, Korede Osundina shot against the post on behalf of the home team.
A lot of things happened in Dordrecht, where Willem II received a penalty more than fifteen minutes before the end after a foul on Rob Nizet. Top scorer Hilterman took his responsibility, but saw his hard (but mediocre) effort turned away by Plogmann. Ten minutes later, Raffael Behounek missed a huge opportunity from a rebound.
Willem II tried everything, but didn’t seem to score. Until injury time, when Michael de Leeuw headed in the 1-1. As a result, Willem II forced promotion on his own.
Standings Kitchen Champion Division 2023/2024
The Netherlands
1
William II
37
22
10
5
74-33
+41
76
2
Roda JC Kerkrade
37
21
12
4
69-32
+37
75
3
Fc Groningen
37
21
9
7
69-30
+39
72
4
FC Dordrecht
37
18
14
5
73-50
+23
68
5
Ado den Haag
37
17
12
8
70-47
+23
63
* Current until May 4, 2024
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