Feyenoord Falls to Westerlo in Friendly Despite Van Persie Jr. Goal

Behind closed doors and away from the noise of De Kuip, Feyenoord’s reserves were given a sharp reminder on Monday: nothing comes easy, not even in a friendly.

The Rotterdam side fell 2-1 to Belgian club KVC Westerlo, despite taking the lead through Shaqueel van Persie. The young forward, fresh from watching the first team draw 2-2 with Go Ahead Eagles on Sunday, made his mark early.

He reacted quickest to a Sem Steijn corner, attacking the ball and finishing decisively to put Feyenoord in front. It was exactly the kind of striker’s instinct that has people talking about the Van Persie name again in Rotterdam.

The advantage did not last. Westerlo worked their way back into the game before half-time, pulling level and gradually seizing control. By the time the players went in at the break, Feyenoord’s early sharpness had faded into a more disjointed display.

This was very much a second-string outing. The starting XI was built around those who had begun on the bench against Go Ahead Eagles, with Giovanni van Bronckhorst stepping back and assistants Sipke Hulshoff and Saïd Bakkati taking charge from the touchline. The message was clear: minutes for the squad, rhythm for the legs, and a chance to convince.

The changes kept coming after the interval. Van Persie made way for Casper Tengstedt, while Jivayno Zinhagel replaced Jordan Lotomba. Later, around the hour mark, Luka Ivanusec entered on the right wing for Gonçalo Borges, adding more first-team experience to the mix.

By then, though, Westerlo had turned the game around. They struck after the restart to move 2-1 ahead, and Feyenoord were suddenly chasing a match that had once looked comfortable.

The closing stages brought urgency, if not precision. Tengstedt found himself with two good opportunities to level the score late on, but he could not convert either chance. Each miss underlined the thin margin between a useful workout with a positive result and a training match that leaves a slightly sour taste.

Feyenoord walked off with a narrow defeat, no crowd to applaud or complain, just staff and players digesting what it meant.

Now the friendly is gone and the stakes rise again. The focus returns to the Vriendenloterij Eredivisie, where Sunday’s 2-2 draw with Go Ahead Eagles already feels like two points dropped. Next up is a trip to promoted SC Cambuur, still searching for their first point after two rounds.

For Feyenoord, anything less than a ruthless response in Leeuwarden will raise louder questions than any behind-closed-doors defeat ever could.