Telstar stun PSV once more with ex-amateur trio inflicting pain on title hopefuls
After the 1-1 result in the Feyenoord versus Ajax match earlier that Sunday, PSV could no longer secure the Eredivisie crown in matchday 28. A victory on the road against Telstar would have extended their advantage to a maximum of 18 points, but Telstar had already pulled off a remarkable upset by defeating PSV at their Eindhoven home earlier in the campaign.
Peter Bosz opted to field Ricardo Pepi up front from the outset, merely a day after the USA forward's prospective 36 million euro transfer to Fulham fell through.
Ismael Saibari produced another impressive individual effort, and Pepi appeared to break the deadlock by slipping the ball beneath Ronald Koeman, yet Danny Bakker made a dramatic clearance off the goal line to maintain parity.
PSV found themselves down to ten players when loanee Anass Salah-Eddine from Roma received a direct red for striking Gerald Alders with an elbow to the jaw, forcing the team to compete short-handed for the remaining 50 minutes.
Things deteriorated further for the prospective champions when Sem van Duijn directed a free kick towards the far corner, allowing Patrick Brouwer to pounce and smash the ball beyond Kovar, putting Telstar ahead just before the interval.
PSV responded swiftly, equalising within 80 seconds of the restart through Kilian Sildillia, who rose to head in a corner delivered by Ivan Perisic, marking the winger's ninth assist this term.
PSV seized command and created opportunities after Sildillia's strike, yet they remained level as efforts from Ryan Flamingo, Couhaib Driouech, and Ismael Saibari failed to put the away side in front.
Telstar persisted with their resilient display and were duly compensated for their efforts against the defending champions as Sem van Duijn struck from range to beat Kovar and restore the home side's advantage in the 66th minute.
The BUKO Stadion erupted again moments later as Kay Tejan, introduced as a substitute only seconds earlier, capitalised on a long throw from Sem van Duijn that landed ideally, allowing the forward to slot past Kovar and make it 3-1 in the 74th minute.
With goals from Brouwer and Van Duijn already on the scoresheet, Tejan joined them as the third ex-Quick Boys amateur to find the net against PSV. Each of the trio had featured at amateur level within the last five years, and Brouwer held the title of Quick Boys Player of the Year at that time.
Telstar continued to threaten, nearly adding a fourth when Devin Koswal unleashed a powerful effort that Kovar parried at his upright.
PSV mounted pressure in the closing stages and believed they had netted a late reply, but Ismael Saibari's clever backheel was disallowed for offside, confirming Telstar's extraordinary double triumph over PSV in what marks their return to the Eredivisie for the first time since 1978.
An encounter that might have clinched the title instead became a nightmare for PSV, who suffered defeats to a newly promoted outfit twice in a single season for the first instance since 1958. Their subsequent chance to claim the championship comes on Saturday, April 4th, hosting FC Utrecht back in Eindhoven.