Utrecht vs De Graafschap

The game exploded into life inside four minutes. Goalkeeper Vasilis Barkas gifted possession to De Graafschap midfielder Fedde de Jong, who made no mistake from close range — 0-1 after three minutes.

FC Utrecht responded immediately. Ángel Alarcón delivered a pinpoint cross and David Min powered a header into the far corner to level the scores in the fourth minute.

Both sides created chances in the remainder of the first half. Yoann Cathline fired just wide and Björn Menzo came close for Utrecht, but it was De Graafschap who struck again before the interval. Driss Laaouina lost possession on a short pass from Barkas and De Jong pounced for his second of the afternoon, making it 1-2 in the 41st minute.

Correia made sweeping changes at half-time and throughout the second period. Michael Brouwer replaced Barkas in goal and a completely new outfield unit took the field. Artem Stepanov and Adrian Blake both went close to an equaliser but found De Graafschap goalkeeper Ties Wieggers in fine form, while Brouwer denied the visitors a third goal at the other end.

Barkas's two costly errors inside the opening 41 minutes handed De Graafschap a lead they never relinquished. The Greek goalkeeper's misplaced pass in the third minute gifted De Jong the opener, and another short ball that Laaouina failed to control led directly to the second goal just before half-time. For a pre-season friendly played primarily for fitness, the individual mistakes gave De Graafschap a platform they exploited ruthlessly.

Fedde de Jong (De Graafschap) — Man of the match. The midfielder scored a brace inside 41 minutes (3', 41'), twice capitalising on Utrecht build-up errors with composed finishes.

David Min (FC Utrecht) — The striker scored Utrecht's equaliser with a well-directed header from Alarcón's fourth-minute cross and was a threat throughout his 45-minute outing.

Ángel Alarcón (FC Utrecht) — Provided the assist for Min's goal with an excellent cross and was Utrecht's most creative outlet in the first half.

Ties Wieggers (De Graafschap) — Made important second-half saves to keep Utrecht at bay, notably denying Artem Stepanov and watching a Menzo effort cleared off the line.

The 1-2 half-time scoreline tells the story: both De Graafschap goals came from individual Utrecht errors in build-up play, not sustained pressure. Utrecht had the better of second-half chances — Menzo had a goal-line clearance, Stepanov forced a save, and Blake fired a late long-range effort — but failed to convert any. The three goals inside 41 minutes made this a livelier pre-season opener than most, though the second half finished goalless as both sides made extensive substitutions.

This was the first pre-season friendly of the 2026/27 campaign for both sides. For Correia, appointed as FC Utrecht head coach in the summer, it offered an early diagnostic of his squad's sharpness and depth. The defensive lapses in build-up play — both originating from Barkas's distribution — will be an immediate focus in training. De Graafschap, preparing for the Keuken Kampioen Divisie season, started their pre-season with an encouraging win against Eredivisie opposition. Utrecht's next pre-season fixture has not been confirmed at the time of writing.

A pre-season friendly decided by Utrecht's own mistakes rather than De Graafschap dominance. Barkas's two errors gifted De Jong a brace inside 41 minutes, and while Utrecht controlled large stretches of the second half, they lacked the cutting edge to pull level. Correia will take positives from the movement of Min and Alarcón, but the defensive fragility in possession is a clear area to address before the Eredivisie season.