AZ Alkmaar vs Juventus: Early Goals Hold Off a Late Dutch Surge
In AZ Alkmaar vs Juventus, two first-half goals from Koopmeiners and Kolo Muani were enough, even as the hosts outshot them and pulled one back late.
Juventus took their Europa League league-stage trip to AZ Alkmaar and left with a 2-1 win built entirely on the first 37 minutes. The scoreline flatters the hosts' control of the ball more than it hides it: AZ finished with 56% possession and 18 shots to Juventus's nine, yet the visitors were the ones who took their chances when the match was still open.
The decisive stretch came early. Teun Koopmeiners put Juventus ahead in the 19th minute, and Randal Kolo Muani doubled the lead in the 37th. From there the visitors had a cushion to defend, and Luciano Spalletti's 3-4-2-1 suited that task. With three at the back and two wing-backs able to drop in, Juventus could concede territory without conceding shape, leaving AZ to circulate the ball in front of a compact block. Kolo Muani's 8.6 rating, the highest of any player on the pitch, reflected how much of the damage he did in a short window, while Koopmeiners (8.2) gave the midfield its edge as well as its opening goal.
The numbers tell a familiar story of volume against precision. AZ's 18 shots produced only three on target, even though their expected goals figure of 2.27 was far higher than Juventus's 0.63. That gap suggests the hosts generated decent looks over the ninety minutes without turning them into clean finishes, while Juventus got two goals from a fraction of the opportunity. Juventus's 20 fouls to AZ's 13 also point to a team happy to break up rhythm. Andrea Cambiaso was booked just after the break, and Jeff Ekhator and Juan Cabal followed late on, a sign of the late pressure Juventus were absorbing and the time-wasting that came with it.
AZ did not fade quietly. Mexx Meerdink, the best-rated home player at 7.3, pulled a goal back in the 88th minute, which turned the closing stretch into a scramble. Deven Kwakman (7.0) was another of the home side's more positive performers. But a single goal with so little time left was never likely to be enough, and Juventus saw the game out through those bookings and a steady, if anxious, defensive effort.
Kickwise's pre-match view leaned toward Juventus, and the result matched it. The reason was less about control than about efficiency: the visitors were clinical when their moments arrived, then protected the lead with a deep, organised shape. AZ will argue they deserved more from the volume of their attacking play, but the early deficit meant they spent the rest of the evening chasing a game they had let slip in the first half.