Heracles vs Excelsior

Excelsior needed only 120 seconds to open the scoring. Gyan de Regt burst down the right flank and pulled back for Irakli Yegoian, who swept the ball calmly into the far corner. Before Heracles could regroup, De Regt doubled the lead straight from the restart — cutting inside from the left and curling a finish into the opposite corner for 2-0 after just three minutes.

Heracles halved the deficit in the 22nd minute when a cross was headed home from close range by M. Borac, making it 2-1. The home side had a foothold, but Excelsior remained the sharper side. Daniël van Vianen came close to restoring the two-goal cushion when his shot was deflected wide by the goalkeeper, and the resulting corner came to nothing.

Excelsior's superiority told in the final phase. De Regt scored his second of the evening with a stunning free kick from the edge of the box that curled into the top corner — 3-1 in the 66th minute. Two minutes later, Yegoian added his second, racing through one-on-one and finishing coolly past the goalkeeper to make it 4-1.

After the main contest, Excelsior's U21 side faced Heracles' reserves in a 60-minute fixture. Heracles struck twice early through L. Kulenović (76') and T. van Gilst (81') to lead 2-0. Excelsior substitute Casper Widell headed home from a corner to reduce the deficit, but Heracles held on for a 2-1 win in the secondary match.

Giulliano Cairo, who signed a contract extension with Excelsior on 22 July, also featured in the second match.

The combined scoreline across both matches read Heracles 3-5 Excelsior, with the aggregate goals reflecting Excelsior's first-team dominance tempered by Heracles' reserve-team response.

Gyan de Regt — Two goals and an assist. The winger was unplayable in the opening minutes, teeing up Yegoian before scoring twice himself, including a free kick of real quality.

Irakli Yegoian — A clinical brace from the Georgian midfielder, both finishes taken with composure. His movement between the lines caused Heracles problems throughout.

M. Borac — Scored Heracles' only goal in the main match with a well-timed header from a cross, briefly giving the home side hope of a comeback.

For Excelsior, a statement pre-season performance under Ruben den Uil. The Eredivisie side showed sharpness and attacking fluency, particularly in the opening exchanges. The Rotterdam club opens the 2026-27 Eredivisie season away to SC Cambuur on 7 August.

Heracles, preparing for the Keuken Kampioen Divisie (KKD) season which also starts on 7 August, continue their pre-season schedule with a friendly against Greek side Volos NFC on 1 August. Manager Erwin van de Looi's side beat Emmen 2-0 on 17 July in their previous friendly and will look to sharpen up defensively before the competitive season begins.

A pre-season friendly structured as two matches produces a distorted scoreline, but the main event was clear: Excelsior's first team were a class above Heracles, with De Regt and Yegoian running the show. Heracles will take encouragement from their reserves' response but know the defensive fragilities exposed in the first 75 minutes need addressing before the KKD campaign begins.