Rotterdam football club Feyenoord’s hopes of qualifying for the group stage of the Champions League took a knock on Wednesday night with a 1-2 loss against Turkish side Besiktas.

The only Feyenoord goal came from a penalty in the last minute of extra time. ‘That goal kept us alive,’ said coach Fred Rutte after the match. The two sides will meet again in Istanbul next week.

Feyenoord, who were Eredivise runners-up last season, have lost a number of key players in the wake of the World Cup. Graziano Pellè (Southampton), Daryl Janmaat (Newcastle United), Bruno Martins Indi (FC Porto) and Stefan de Vrij (Lazio) have all moved on.

Khalid Boulahrouz and reserve keeper Warner Hahn are the club’s only new buy so far, as the clubs directors revitalise the finances.

Frustration

The frustration led striker Ruben Schaken, who was forced to play in defence on Wednesday night, to criticise the club’s leadership.

‘I’ve been here five seasons and every year we start our European campaign with a team which, with all due respect, is not up to full strength,’ is is quoted as saying by news agency ANP.

‘Last season we worked really hard to qualify for Europe… then you get there and players are sold and we have to wait, wait, wait. By the time we get reinforcements, we might be out.’

Match report