AZ's Missed Opportunities in Europa League Opener

AZ left the Stadium of Light with nothing but regret. A 1-0 defeat to Sunderland in their Europa League opener, and a lingering sense they had thrown away a result that was there for the taking.

They carved out chances. Plenty of them. They just didn’t finish.

For Khalid Boulahrouz, watching on in the Ziggo Sport studio, that was unforgivable at this level.

A miss that defined the night

The moment that stuck in his throat came ten minutes from time. AZ chasing an equaliser, the game stretched, Sunderland wobbling. The ball fell to Mexx Meerdink with the goal at his mercy.

He hesitated.

Instead of a decisive strike, the AZ forward delayed, took an extra touch, and then rolled a tame effort against the outstretched leg of goalkeeper Robin Roefs. Chance gone. With it, AZ’s best opportunity to salvage something from a match they had largely dictated.

"At this level, at least one of them has to go in," Boulahrouz said, visibly irritated as he reviewed the stack of missed opportunities. Then he zoomed in on the big one.

"This chance from Meerdink. It is just hit too weakly, low to the ground. If you are ruthless, you just smash it into the roof of the net."

Theo Janssen had already used the word every striker dreads and needs in equal measure: killer. Boulahrouz agreed.

"Theo rightly said: you have to become a killer as a striker. Especially if he wants to get to the Netherlands national team. Then these are the chances in which you can set yourself apart."

The criticism went beyond one wayward finish. For Boulahrouz, the hesitation itself told a story.

"Delaying it once more, taking another touch, that means you are not quite in the right position yourself. Because of that, you can no longer strike it the way you want. This is simply wasting a 100 per cent chance," he snapped. "These are things he really has to cut out. Looking at the whole match, he was simply too sloppy, not good as a focal point... And the chances he got, you have to finish them."

Meerdink owns up – but not enough for Janssen

Meerdink did not hide. He knew where the spotlight would fall and walked straight into it.

"I think at some moments I lost the ball a bit too easily, but I also had a number of good moments. My area for development is that I have to keep doing it consistently," he admitted.

On the decisive miss, he didn’t try to dress it up.

"That ball at the end, I have to smash it in. Not think and just hit it with the instep. In the box I have to be, become, deadly."

Honest words. But they did not soften Janssen’s view. If anything, his interview only sharpened the former midfielder’s criticism.

"Interesting. He has the feeling that he still played quite a decent match. He is quite satisfied," Janssen observed, eyebrow raised. "I would advise him to calmly watch this match back again, because it comes down to a number of moments in which, as a striker, you have to be deadly and in which you have to be strong to give your team some calm. Those few moments are not enough, my friend."

The tone was blunt, almost personal, but it came from a place of belief in Meerdink’s talent rather than dismissal of it.

"He is a very enjoyable footballer, he is technically refined, has all the attributes to be a good player," Janssen concluded. "Only he lacks that hunger. You have to do everything for it. He must always give everything for it, and I miss that a little with him sometimes. He has so much potential, but he is not getting everything out of it."

AZ’s European campaign has only just begun, but the message around their young striker is already crystal clear: the chances will come again. The question is whether Mexx Meerdink will still hesitate when they do.