Feyenoord are out of the Europa League after a 2-1 defeat to Roma in a turbulent match at De Kuip.
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Last week the first leg in Rome was marred by events outside the stadium with Feyenoord fans clashing with police and reportedly causing damage to city monuments before the 1-1 draw. However tonight it was events inside the stadium that marred what should have been an excellent match.
The game got off to decent start for Feyenoord, with the Rotterdam side enjoying possession, but not creating any real chances. Colin Kazim Richards was proving a handful for Roma’s defence and midfielder Daniel de Rossi was more than lucky to avoid punishment for what looked a deliberate elbow on the forward, who’s night was shortened by a hamstring injury.
Francesco Totti came the closest to breaking the deadlock, but after a chip flew just wide of Kenneth Vermeer’s goal, the Italian maestro also struck the foot of the post with a free kick. Just before the break the visitors were ahead with Adam Ljajic firing past Kenneth Vermeer at the back post.
After the break the match descended into chaos as French referee Clément Turpin showed Mitchel te Vrede a harsh straight red card for a tackle on Kostas Manolas. The decision then led to fans of Feyenoord pelting the pitch with whatever they had in their pockets, including lighters and coins, and the referee led the players back to the dressing room until the crowd calmed down.
When the match resumed Feyenoord brought on Elvis Manu, and straight away the forward had an impact, ghosting through the Roma defence before slotting in the equaliser. However the joy of the equaliser was short lived as Vasilis Torosidis sent an excellent ball into the box for Gervinho to put the tie firmly in Roma’s favour.
Needing two goals to progress Feyenoord threw everything at Roma, but Terence Kongolo’s close range effort was deflected wide, Jens Toornstra’s free kick was just tipped over the bar, and Elvis Manu just failed to reach a ball across goal, as the Italians held on for victory.
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The only conclusion you can draw is that the officials were told this “would not be Feyenoord’s night” so bad was their collective performances.