Feyenoord - a class act - 26/09/2002

A battling performance by Al

Links:  Players:    Shay Given  Clubs:    Newcastle United  Leagues & Cups:    Champions League

The moment I arrived at the ground, I knew it was going to be a bit different to a normal Premiership game. UEFA security and staff were all over the place, I couldn’t even walk around the stands like I usually do. There was very much a ‘big time’ feel to the match.

The scoreline was disappointing, the performance was good – better than last Saturday’s game against Sunderland. But this is Champions League football and the quality of Feyenoord was to be expected. The Dutch side didn’t get an awful lot of chances, certainly no where near as many as we did, but they put there’s away and then went on to keep a clean sheet.

After starting the game in a positive way, the early goal caught us cold – something that’s happened on more than one occasion this season. The goal was well put away, although it definitely came deflected into the net and Shay didn’t have a chance. I was urging us to get an equaliser because I’m sure we could have gone on to win it.

Brett Emerton looked a very steady player, one of the things that impresses me is his versatility. I've seen him on about four occasions and each time he’s played in different positions. More importantly, he’s done well and never looked like he’s playing in an unnatural position! If I were the manager, then yes, I’d put a bid in for him!

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