FC Utrecht drew in the GelreDome this evening (Friday). The Eredivisie match against Vitesse ended 1-1. It was Utrecht’s seventh unbeaten game in a row.

A simple ball to the head. And bang! Eloy Room was beaten. It was one of the few times Room had had to dive and it cost the hosts in Gelderland two points. Sébastien Haller outsmarted the keeper and again demonstrated his value to Utrecht. Giovanni Troupée gave the shrewd ball that equalised the score.

Effective combination
Before the goal, Vitesse had been forcing Utrecht back into their own half. The combination of Ricky van Wolfswinkel and Milot Rashica was proving a deadly one. Time after time, they caused headaches in the Utrecht defence. A back heel, a through ball, a fast dribble, one of these actions, a double stepover, proved fatal. Rashica put the ball through to Van Wolfswinkel, who slotted it past Robin Ruiter.

Tactical substitution 
Erik ten Hag weighed up his options to turn the game around. A double substitution followed: Edson Braafheid and Richairo Zivkovic came on and boosted the team’s confidence. Utrecht gained more control, kept Vitesse further from their goal and got the equaliser.

Good run
The draw was Utrecht’s seventh unbeaten game in a row. The run against Vitesse is also impressive. Utrecht have taken at least one point from the last six games against the Gelderlanders.

Cambuur at Zoudenbalch
Erik ten Hag will be busy working on his team during the internationals weekend. Although there are no league fixtures and many players have been called up for international duties, FC Utrecht are looking forward to playing SC Cambuur. The Frisians will be the guests at the Zoudenbalch sport complex on Thursday, 1 September, kick-off at 14.30.

Vitesse - FC Utrecht 1-1 (1-0)
28. Ricky van Wolfswinkel 1-0
68. Sébastien Haller 1-1

Yellow cards: Kelvin Leerdam (Vitesse) and Andreas Ludwig (FC Utrecht).

Attendance: 12,105

Referee: Björn Kuipers

Vitesse line-up:
Eloy Room; Maikel van der Werff; Kelvin Leerdam; Arnold Kruijswijk; Milot Rashica; Nathan (70. Mitchell van Bergen); Ricky van Wolfswinkel; Marvelous Nakamba; Sheran Yeini; Lewis Baker

FC Utrecht line-up:
Robbin Ruiter; Giovanni Troupée, Willem Janssen, Ramon Leeuwin, Kevin Conboy; Yassin Ayoub; Rico Strieder (61. Edson Braafheid); Andreas Ludwig; Sofyan Amrabat; Patrick Joosten (61. Richairo Zivkovic); Sébastien Haller (64. Gyrano Kerk).