Never give up, always keep pushing: from 2-2 to 4-2 and now on to Arnhem
From 2-0 to 2-2 and yet still 4-2: against FC Eindhoven on Saturday, NAC showed that it never gives up, and the stands showed why. Now we need to push on. Vitesse away in Arnhem awaits on Saturday, the first real test for Rick Kruys's NAC, and we all want to be there for it.
Eindhoven in short
Brym headed home a free kick from Nassoh in the fourth minute, Soumano made it 2-0 after an hour, and NAC played with attacking intent and guts. After that, the team gave away two goals in twenty minutes. But the stadium kept singing, louder than before, and carried the team through it. Substitutes Mohamed Bouchouari (86th minute) and Imran Nazih (stoppage time, his first for NAC) finished it off. Nazih ran straight to the B-Side. Never give up, always push forward.
Saturday Vitesse away: this is the real test
Saturday, October 3rd at 4:30 PM at the Gelredome. Vitesse is in sixth place and is a side that can play football. Last weekend, Rüdiger Rehm's team lost 2-0 at Heracles, so they will want to set things right at home. For us, this is the first serious benchmark under Kruys. Two wins in a row, thirteen points, and closing the gap on the group at the top—that's a nice start. But captain Nassoh remains level-headed: we haven't achieved anything yet. In Arnhem, we can show that it's more than just a good week.
The referee is Alex Bos. He has officiated NAC before, including the won first play-off match in 2023. Good to know, but on Saturday it just has to come from ourselves.
What Saturday is all about
Kruys was happy after Eindhoven, but certainly not satisfied. Against Eindhoven, NAC maintained the tempo and pressure for about sixty to seventy minutes. That needs to be ninety, he said. It was precisely in that final phase, when the legs get heavier and the tension sets in, that NAC allowed the lines to drift too far apart. That has been trained hard this week, and you should see that on Saturday.
The second point came from Nazih himself: finishing. Against Eindhoven, we could have decided the match by halftime, with chances for Van den Bergh, Lucassen, and Soumano. Away at a team like Vitesse, you get fewer, so that one chance has to go in.
The good news: the attack is clicking. Brym is on three goals in two matches, Soumano finally grabbed his goal after a few weeks of fighting, and Nassoh is distributing one ball after another from midfield. And when needed, there are substitutes who make the difference. Kruys says it himself: he needs everyone.
Keuken Kampioen Divisie or not, it makes no difference at NAC. The stadium is full every week, and so is the away end. Club love knows no division.
There are still tickets. Being there = Experiencing it!
A maximum of 1000 NAC supporters are allowed in Arnhem, and there are still tickets available. Let's fill that away section. And the next one, and the one after that. A sold-out away section all season long—that’s how we show what NAC is. Against Eindhoven, we saw what a full stand does for this team. That can happen just as well in Arnhem.
Buy your ticket for Vitesse - NAC
All info can be found on NAC's ticket sales page.
Need something for the road? In our Awaydays collection, you’ll find everything you need for the trip, from phone stickers to a neck warmer for when it gets windy in Arnhem.
A thousand people in yellow and black in Gelderland. Then all of Arnhem will know where we come from.
And after that, it continues immediately
After Arnhem, we don't have long to wait. Friday, October 9th at 8:00 PM, MVV comes to the Rat Verlegh Stadium, a real 'Avondje NAC'. After that, Helmond Sport away and Heracles at home, and at the end of October, the cup adventure begins at JOS Watergraafsmeer in Amsterdam, the only Fourth Division club in the main tournament. An amateur club, a full canteen, and a bunch of supporters from Breda. The perfect opportunity to sticker.
See you in Arnhem on Saturday
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Buy your ticket for Vitesse - NAC
Coat on, voices ready, bus on the road. Up NAC!
