Ronald Koeman junior is furious with referee Jeroen Manschot after Telstar's 3-4 defeat to Feyenoord. The home side's goalkeeper disputes the second-half penalty Manschot awarded the Rotterdam side and lashes out at him on ESPN immediately after the match.
Just over fifty minutes in, Manschot awarded Feyenoord a penalty for an alleged handball by Telstar defender Abdelnour Soualhia. A lengthy VAR review left his decision intact, and Sem Steijn scored from the spot to make it 2-4.
Watching footage of the incident on ESPN, Koeman junior cannot believe the decision. "Oh, come on! If the ball hits him, it hits his head first," the goalkeeper says.
The goalkeeper cites an explanation he heard this week from refereeing chief Richard van Meenen about the ball hitting a hand after striking the player's own body. "Then it isn't handball."
Koeman junior points to a previous run-in with Manschot. "But yes, I really have to hold back. It's Jeroen Manschot again. Last year, in the KNVB Cup semi-final, he screwed us over too," says the goalkeeper, before qualifying his words: "Or 'screwed us over'... We're a bit unlucky, of course."
Crucial moments are when Koeman junior believes decisions go against Telstar. "If you go 4-2 down or it stays 3-2, well, who knows, there might be more in it," says the goalkeeper.
Koeman junior also recounts his conversation with Manschot. "He said to me: 'Ultimately, I make my own decision.' So I think he's been told off, that referees need to make more of their own decisions," the goalkeeper suggests. "I said to him: just let play continue, and if it really is handball, VAR will step in. But yes, it's difficult."
Steijn then struck the penalty emphatically as Koeman junior watched. "Of course I hoped to save it, but he struck it pretty well," admits the goalkeeper. Despite conceding four goals, he remains positive about Telstar's attacking style of play. "That's part of our game, pressing high. Then, of course, you see Feyenoord's quality."
Despite the defeat, Koeman junior is proud of his side for fighting back several times against the league leaders. "We suffered a few setbacks today, but we just kept doing our thing and coming back," he stresses. "We simply have to take this into next week, and I have every confidence."