As mentioned in my preview, I questioned how much energy would be expended for the Portsmouth UEFA Cup match and without surprise, Heerenveen’s UEFA Cup efforts ended with a 3-0 loss to the English side. Given the club is locked in a tie with PSV at twenty-six points and chasing Twente, Ajax and AZ the question was whether the club would prioritize the weekend match against Sparta Rotterdam or push forward for a victory.With Geert Arend Roorda, Bonaventure Kalou and Croatian international Danijel Pranjić out of the lineup, Heerenveen pushed forward early and came close with Roy Beerens rattling the woodwork. However it was not too long before Peter Crouch began to take over on the attack and after a number of misses he headed Marc Wilson’s cross in five minutes before the break. Only two minutes later the English striker drove a close range rebound in to give Portsmouth the 2-0 lead at the break. Tarik Elyounoussi had a chance to bring a goal back were fifteen minutes after the restart but after it drifted wide, there were no further attempts. As time wound down Hermann Hreidarsson re-directed Glen Little’s free-kick in.
Repeating my original contentions, the priority must be the domestic season and continuing the winning streak with Sparta Rotterdam on Saturday.
