Barry Landy reports from Alkmaar
DUNDALK ARE IN the Netherlands ahead of their historic first ever group stage match in European competition tomorrow — with last year’s fourth placed Eredivisie side AZ Alkmaar providing the opposition.
Stephen Kenny’s side will surely have their work cut out against a team that regularly compete with the likes of Ajax, PSV Eindhoven and Feyenoord towards the top of the Dutch top flight.
This summer, AZ saw the departures of key duo Vincent Janssen and Markus Hendriksen – with the Dutch and Norwegian internationals joining Tottenham Hotspur and Hull City respectively.
They qualified for the group stages by virtue of their fourth place finish last term, but they have had to navigate tricky qualifying ties against PAS Giannina and Vojvodina to confirm their place in the last 64.
History
AZ were founded in 1967 so are a relatively new team compared to some of those they will be coming up against. They came about as the result of a merger between Alkmaar 54 and FC Zaanstreek, initially going by the name AZ 67.
Alkmaar won the Dutch title for the very first time in 1981. Between 1965 and 2009, they were the only team from outside the ‘big three’ to win the championship.
Within 13 years of their formation they won the Dutch title and soon after, reached the Uefa Cup final.
AZ were relegated from the Eredivie in 1988 – seven years after winning the league. They didn’t return for 10 years.
Last season
After edging Feyenoord out for a place in the top three in 2014/15, the tables were turned last term as the men from Rotterdam pipped AZ to a third place finish.
Propelled by the goals of Vincent Janssen, they scored 70 goals en route their fourth-place league finish. The Dutch international scored 27 of them – 39% of their total. However, along the way, they only managed to beat Feyenoord of their immediate rivals. They lost 3-0 and 4-1 to Ajax and lost 3-0 and 4-2 to PSV.
In the Europa League group stage, they only managed one win — at home to Athletic Bilbao. They lost home and away to both FC Augsburg and Partizan Belgrade.
European pedigree
After a period in the doldrums throughout the late 80s and 90s, Alkmaar are now perennial European qualifiers. They have qualified for the group stages of the Europa League/UEFA Cup in eight of the last 12 years. On one of those occasions, they were in the Champions League. That was in 2009, on the back of their league triumph.
Living in the shadow of the Netherlands’ big three means that AZ’s European participation hasn’t been all that regular prior to the last decade. But if they haven’t quite failed to break the cycle of the top three clubs, they are the best of the rest and Europa League regulars at this stage.
Their best ever performance in Europe came in 1981/82 when they made the last 16 of the European Cup, eventually going out to Liverpool. The year before, they lost out to Bobby Robson’s Ipswich Town in the UEFA Cup final.
The squad
On the face of it, AZ’s squad looks weaker this season compared to last – especially when you consider the sales of Janssen and Hendriksen to Premier League teams.
Their outlay this summer was modest. They spent €4.35m on new players, though that is relative when you consider the finance available to Dundalk.
They bolstered their attacking options with the double addition of centre forward Wout Weghorst and attacker Iliass Bel Hassani from Heracles Almelo, whilst young Nigerian striker Fred Friday has also arrived from Lillestrom in Norway.
Recognisable to Premier Legaue fans will be the AZ captain Ron Vlaar. He rejoined his first professional club late last year after his release from Aston Villa. Since he returned, he has been a virtual ever-present and has played 90 minutes in 21 of 22 league games.
The manager
John van den Brom is a former Dutch international midfielder who has spent most of his management career in the Netherlands – aside from a two-year spell in charge of Belgian side Anderlecht.
Van den Brom succeeded Marco van Basten as the new AZ coach two years ago and has led them to third place and fourth place finishes.
In recent years, Louis Van Gaal and Ronald Koeman have also had spells at the AFAS Stadion. Van Gaal’s was much more successful though, as the ex-Manchester United boss led the club to just it’s second-ever league title success. Koeman lasted just seven months in charge before being sacked.
Van den Brom has managed three clubs in the Dutch top flight – ADO Den Haag, Vitesse and AZ – and has led all three to the Europa League.
While at Anderlecht, he guided them to the 2012/13 Jupiler League title and he managed them in two Champions League group stage campaigns.
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