AZ Alkmaar put themselves right back in the discussion for the top-four places, thanks to a comfortable win 3-0 against Utrecht in the Dutch Eredivisie.
Calvin Stengs was the cream of the crop for AZ on the night as his goal was the pick of the three goals – a beautiful solo goal that was executed to perfection. AZ fans must have been delighted to see Stengs play so well.
AZ Alkmaar went into the game fifth on the Eredivisie log following Vittese’s win the day before.
Surprisingly, there was no place for RiechedlyBazoer on the Utrecht starting lineup as the player was left on the bench, in favor of Nick Venema in the team.
On the other hand, there were no surprises for AZ when the team sheets were revealed, as Stengs spearheaded the attack as expected, alongside Mats Seuntjens and Oussam aIdrissi.
AZ began the game very much on the front foot and eventually went ahead on 36 minutes through Ricardo van Rhijn. The Dutch midfielder fired a cracking effort from distance that narrowly beat goalkeeper David Jensen.
The lead was double just before half time after Seuntjens received a long ball from midfield before tucking the ball home past a helpless Jensen. The goalkeeper must have wondered how this particularly one got in. He will be kicking himself for not saving that one! 2-0 the first half ended with AZ in full control.
There was a Utrecht change at halftime with Jean-Christophe Bahebeck coming on in place of the disappointing Venema.
We saw the pick of the goals in injury time however, as Stengs did well to glide a couple of challenges in the Utrecht defense before firing the ball past Jensen. That was Stengs first goal since returning from his long-term injury and the delight on his face during celebrations was clear for everyone to see.