Maher threaded a pass forward. De Jong brought the ball under control, and facing the defending Strieder and Leeuwin, he showed no panic at all, taking the ball straight at Strieder.
Watch this! Tang Ye charged up from behind and launched into a sliding tackle at de Jong. De Jong suddenly changed direction, and Tang Ye's tackle sliced through thin air before tripping Strieder instead.
!!!
De Jong passed the ball to Narsingh, who slipped a through ball into the six-yard box.
Goalkeeper Ruiter rushed out, but de Jong was still a step quicker, side-footing the ball into the net.
"The ball is in! The ball is in!"
"Luuk de Jong! What did I say? What did I say!"
"Isn't that what forwards do? PSV Eindhoven extend their lead again!"
"2:1!"
De Jong ran out of Utrecht's penalty area while Tang Ye reached down to pull Strieder up from the ground. "My bad, my bad. Are you okay? Are you okay?"
"..."
Strieder got to his feet, utterly speechless.
Even if he had not been tripped, he still would not have been able to stop de Jong's run into the box.
But that was no reason to tackle your own teammate!
"You really okay?"
Tang Ye asked Strieder again, finally breathing a sigh of relief after confirming that his teammate was not injured.
The camera cut to Erik ten Hag, the Utrecht manager covering his face with his right hand.
I can't even watch! How did my Lucky Bro send his own teammate flying?
He tripped him, he did not tackle him down. Those were different!
PSV Eindhoven were still fierce, as expected of a Champions League team. Utrecht were better suited to being a comedy act.
What a shame. Lucky Bro should have been given a few more months