Football Season Guide

Heerenveen's last season was very strange, full of ups and downs, but in the end 12th place reflected the actual value of the team. They had surprised everyone with a great start, which was totally unexpected considering that during the summer they had sold several valuable players and that they began with a very short roster. Then came an inevitable decline that led them to lose positions. Coach Johnny Jansen initially relied on the 4-2-3-1 system of play, but when things didn't work anymore, switched to the 4-3-3. Frisians had two real drivers, the duo Veerman & Veerman, Joey in midfield made the difference, and the giant Henk was their top scorer with 14 goals. At the moment they are both still part of the team, but persistent rumours put Joey one step away from leaving them for more prestigious shores. During the summer they have already lost former Ajax Lasse Schone, who however had fallen short of expectations, right-back Sherel Floranus, and regular goalkeeper Ariel Harush. The latter was replaced by Xavier Mous, coming from PEC Zwolle, while as right-back came Milan van Ewijk, who had a great season with ADO Den Haag. Another important arrival is that of experienced centre-back Sven van Beek. Coach Jansen first of all will have to choose who will be the starting goalkeeper between Mous and Mulder, while for the defense roles he should have less doubts, Bochniewicz and Van Beek the central, Van Ewijk on the right and Woudenberg or Kaib on the left. Kongolo and De Jong should play alongside Joey in midfield, while Nygren, Van Bergen, Stevanovic and Van der Heide will play alongside Henk.