Dusan Tadic has yet to make an impression on his Eredivisie debut for NEC. The Nijmegen side endured a grim first half against Telstar and trail 0-2 at home. The 37-year-old Serb is facing heavy criticism on social media and among NEC supporters.
Just half a minute was all Telstar needed at De Goffert to open the scoring. After a long throw-in, Soualhia flicked the ball on to Patrick Brouwer, who kept his composure and beat NEC goalkeeper Gonzalo Crettaz. NEC then pushed hard for an equaliser and created chances through, among others, Tjaronn Chery and Sami Ouaissa, but failed to take them.
Then the visitors struck again after 24 minutes. Brouwer set up Rui Mendes, who curled the ball beautifully into the far corner to make it 0-2 for Telstar. NEC tried to fight their way back into the match, but found it very difficult to seriously test goalkeeper Ronald Koeman junior.
So far, Tadic has been unable to make the difference. The veteran was barely involved in the opening 15 minutes and mostly showed his frustration with his side's display through gestures. On X, viewers are openly questioning what the forward can still offer: “Tadic in the starting XI instead of Linssen, yes, then you are giving up quite a lot of quality. The proof is there on the pitch,” one viewer writes.
Others also see a clear contrast with NEC's other attacking options. “Quite a difference, Tadic or that Japanese lad (Koki Ogawa, ed.) up front,” it says, while another viewer replies: “Well, Linssen on the bench, then this is what you get with Tadic.” The expectations around the Serb's big name are also being mocked: “Where is the big Tadic show?”
His return to the Eredivisie has also triggered reactions in Amsterdam. One Ajax supporter points to the noises from fans who wanted to see the former captain back at the Johan Cruyff ArenA: “Hopefully the people who wanted Tadic back at Ajax are also watching NEC-Telstar.” The feeling is clear: viewers believe that in his first appearance for NEC, Tadic has barely shown why his arrival generated so much expectation.
On supporters' forum SV NEC, the criticism is just as fierce. “Chery and Tadic, neither of them can keep up any more,” one supporter writes, before another says NEC's problems are becoming “painfully clear today”. A third supporter is equally unimpressed by the two veterans up front: “Tadic and Chery are trudging around up front. What a sad sight to watch.”
El Ahmadi on Tadic
ESPN analyst Karim El Ahmadi is also unimpressed by Tadic at half-time of the match. “I have to say: it is very difficult for him. He is not really in the game,” said the former midfielder. “What he depends on is getting on the ball and then having people make runs around him. If he is in the box, he has to be able to hold the ball up, but there are so many Telstar players right on top of him.”