Willem van Hanegem finds it incomprehensible that he got away with a yellow card for a foul on Julian Baas in the match between Ajax and Excelsior (2-2). The defender planted his studs on the ankle of the Excelsior midfielder, but was not sent off by referee Sander van der Eijk.
“Of course it is inconceivable that Anton Gaaei was not sent out, that cannot be explained to anyone,” says Van Hanegem in his column for the Algemeen Dagblad. “I heard somewhere that he certainly didn’t want to hit an opponent like that. No, what exactly did he want? And with nine against eleven, Ajax probably wouldn’t have scored anymore.”
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At the time of Gaaei’s violation, Steven Bergwijn had already received a red card. With ten men, Ajax managed to secure a point in the final phase. According to Van Hanegem, Excelsior should not only blame the arbitration, but also themselves for giving away the lead.
“You kind of miss going into matches with that team with your heart and soul. They have one piece of luck: RKC doesn’t have that either,” the Feyenoord icon refers to the relegation battle. Excelsior is fifteenth in the Eredivisie, one point ahead of number sixteen RKC.
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