Ajax confirmed third spot on the final day of the Dutch season as FC Volendam were relegated.
Ajax confirm third spot as Volendam are relegated
Ajax confirmed third spot on the final day of the Dutch season as FC Volendam were relegated.
With AZ Alkmaar confirmed as champions and Steve McClaren's FC Twente guaranteed second spot,
Ajax only had third to play for.
They got the victory they needed against
Twente at the Amsterdam ArenA with the only goal of the game coming the from Urby Emanuelson on the hour mark.
AZ signed off as champions with a comfortable 3-1 victory over
Heerenveen at the DSB Stadion.
Highly-rated strikers Mounir El Hamdaoui (13) and Moussa Dembele (44 & 58) set up the win for the home side, as Heerenveen could only muster an injury-time consolation from Patrik Ingelsten.
Ajax's win meant
PSV Eindhoven could only finished fourth, and they ended their thoroughly disappointing season with a 3-0 win at
Willem II with the goals coming from Ola Toivonen (27), Balazs Dzsudzsak (59) and Danny Koevermans (76)
FC Volendam were relegated after they failed to take victory at
De Graafshcap - who themselves finished second from bottom.
The two played out a 2-2 draw at De Vijverberg with all the goals coming in an action packed second-half. Stephan Keller had given the home side the edge after 55 minutes but Volendam then gave themselves some real hope as Gerson Sheotahul (64) and Jack Tuyp (68) scored.
But then their dreams were shattered as Gerry Koning put through his own net to gift De Graafschap an equaliser.
Koning's own goal meant relegation for Volendam because
Roda JC - who started the day at the foot of the table - won 3-2 at
Feyenoord.
Roda started well as Sekou Cisse put them ahead on 14 minutes and things got better for JC as Dwight Teindalli was sent off soon after for Feyenoord.
Marcel Meeuwis then doubled Roda's lead on 21 minutes with a penalty before Feyenoord hit back at the start of the second half as Roy Makaay pulled one back.
But the win was virtually sealed as Anouar Hadouir fired home a third for the visitors. Makaay pulled another back from the penalty spot, but Feyenoord were reduced to nine men when Kevin Hofland was dismissed and that made things easier for Roda to hang on.
Roda avoid automatic relegation, but both themselves and De Graafschap now going into a relegation play-off competition with eight teams from the Eerste Divisie.
ADO Den Haag and Heracles both avoided the relegation play-off.
Den Haag saved themselves after a comfortable 3-1 win over
Vitesse Arnhem. The home side were in control early on as Danny Bujis (17) and Karim Soltani (22) put them 2-0 up.
Bujis' second on the hour secured the win, although Vitesse managed a late consolation through Ricky van Wolfswinkel.
Heracles in the end were safe without doing anything but they did claim a point in their final game of the season with
FC Utrecht.
Heracles looked to be heading for victory as Mark-Jan Fledderus scored (24), but Cedric van der Gun sealed a point for the visitors with his goal in injury time.
NEC Nijmegen could have claimed ninth spot, but they were denied that as they were held to a 1-1 draw by
Sparta Rotterdam.
Sparta took the lead through Erik Falkenburg (25), but NEC made sure they avoided defeat as Bas Sibum levelled just before the interval.
And finally, sixth-placed
Groningen ended the season with victory over
NAC Breda with Andreas Granqvist getting the winner on the stroke of half-time.
