PSV is always a topic of conversation. Especially after a win in extremis against Omonia Nicosia. In PSV in the Picture you can read external reports about players, players, the club and the supporters.
Schmidt: We fought for the points
Head coach Roger Schmidt told the press room in Nicosia that his team did not play the best football, but certainly deserved the win. "The situation was very difficult for this match. We were missing many players and for our focus it was obviously not good that we had to travel separately," Schmidt said. Nevertheless, it is a nice step forward for PSV, which is in a much rosier place again. Schmidt is pleased with the footballing aspect he saw, especially in the closing stages: "We always showed that we wanted to win. Not with long balls, but just by playing football."
Malen passes Ronaldo
With two goals, Donyell Malen was invaluable for PSV. The 21-year-old captained the team for the first time and said he was proud to wear the captain's armband at such a young age. Malen's two goals against Omonia Nicosia brings his total to 11 European goals for PSV. In doing so, he eclipses the record of Ronaldo, who was a nine-timer for the club before his 22nd birthday.
PSV win worth gold for Dutch football
Partly due to PSV's victory, the Netherlands has moved closer to number eight Belgium on the coefficient list, writes Voetbal International. Currently, the Netherlands still holds the ninth spot, but the distance with number ten Austria is growing. This means that the Eredivisie champion will almost certainly be awarded a direct Champions League ticket in 2022. The Netherlands also did good business in "the list of the future" this week. The coefficient list lasts for five years, meaning that the Netherlands' good season in Europe 2016-2017 will go away after this season. Partly because of the points the Netherlands grabbed this week, it climbs from place 11 to place 10.
Malen nomination
The luck for Malen cannot stop after his performance in Cyprus. The PSV player is on the shortlist for 'Player of the Week' in the Europa League. UEFA is compiling a list of four names. Friday at 15:00 it will be announced whether Malen is the winner. The shortlist features another Dutchman: Elvis Manu. He scored a hat-trick on behalf of Ludogorets Razgrad against LASK, but that still wasn't enough to win. Manu lost 4-3 to the Austrians. The two other nominees are Michael Liendl of Wolfsberger AC, which won 1-4 against Feyenoord, and El Fardou Ben Nabouhane of Red Star Belgrade.
Compliments for Ihattaren
At the end of the press conference at GSP Stadium, Schmidt wanted to say a few words about Mohamed Ihattaren: "Mo has now played three games in seven days. It was a heavy load for him physically. I am very happy with his development, he is on the right track." Ihattaren played his first ninety minutes of this season against Granada CF. Subsequently, against Vitesse and Omonia Nicosia, he also featured for the entire game.
