PSV Steamrolls On and Grabs Impressive Record Against Helpless Heracles

Very early in the game, any potential tension was removed, as far as there was any to begin with. The balance of power was significantly skewed in Overijssel. Heracles had not won in their last four matches and were embarrassingly knocked out of the cup tournament during the week by second-tier HHC. PSV, on the other hand, is in a terrific flow and has yet to lose a single point in the Eredivisie. It quickly became clear that this was not going to change on Saturday evening.

In an attempt to prevent Guus Til from scoring, Heracles captain Justin Hoogma slid in but ended up hitting Til hard on the ankle. This was initially missed by referee Joey Kooij, but after VAR Ingmar Oostrom intervened, a penalty was awarded and Hoogma received a red card. Luuk de Jong converted the penalty in the 22nd minute, equaled Wim Kieft (158 goals) on the all-time Eredivisie top scorers list, and extinguished the last bit of hope for the Heracles fans for an upset. Before the break, Jerdy Schouten doubled the lead with his first goal for PSV.

Thus, PSV coach Peter Bosz's milestone match, his 300th in the Eredivisie, turned out to be an easy one. This allowed PSV to conserve energy ahead of the important European match against RC Lens. As a result, a shorthanded Heracles managed to keep up reasonably well, but when PSV stepped up a gear, the away team became dangerous. Malik Tillman scored the third goal, shortly after Hirving Lozano hit the post. Even the much-discussed André Ramalho joined in the celebration, scoring twenty minutes before time.

This earned PSV an impressive record. The leaders had already won their last three away matches by a four-goal margin. RKC Waalwijk, Almere City FC, and Sparta Rotterdam had all succumbed 0-4 at home. Never before had a team managed to win four consecutive away games in the Eredivisie with a margin of at least four goals. Ajax (1995) and FC Utrecht (2019) had managed three such consecutive victories in the past. For PSV against Heracles, the scoreline did not stop at 0-4; Til and Ricardo Pepi added goals in the final phase.

It was a carefree evening for PSV, if not for the fact that Ismael Saibari fell out with a head injury shortly after coming on as a substitute. It is not yet known if the match against Lens is in jeopardy. PSV will face the French side at home on Wednesday evening.