AZ Alkmaar looking to kickstart Europa League campaign following opening day defeat to Sunderland

AZ Alkmaar looking to kickstart Europa League campaign following opening day defeat to Sunderland AZ Alkmaar welcome Israeli side Hapoel Beer Sheva to the Netherlands this evening in their second Europa League game of the season. The side lost 1-0 to Sunderland in England in their opening game but will fully expect to get their European campaign up and running at home to the Israeli side. AZ will face a Hapoel Beer Sheva who will not have any away fans in attendance after they were banned from the game. Given the scenes we saw in Amsterdam in 2024 following Ajax’s clash with Maccabi Tel Aviv, it is unsurprising that this decision has been taken, even if it does diminish the atmosphere at the game. Yet for AZ Alkmaar, the outside noise is irrelevant to what goes on on the pitch. The side have started the Eredivisie campaign strongly, with six wins, one draw and one defeat. This defeat came at the weekend against Feyenoord , who themselves got an impressive victory in Europe this week. AZ will be looking to bounce back, and they will be hoping that striker Mexx Meerdink can fire them to victory. The striker has four goals in 10 games to star this season and is well on his way to exceed the eight goals in 32 games he scored last season. With AZ Alkmaar set to face Ararat Armenia, Juventus, Sparta Prague, Sturm Graz and Dinamo Zagreb in this years competition, a victory at home against Hapoel Beer Sheva is certainly crucial to their chances of progressing to the next phase of the competition. Last season AZ Alkmaar competed in the Conference League and finished 14th, eventually being knocked out by Shakhtar Donetsk in the quarter-finals. GBeNeFN  |  Ben Jackson