1998–99 Willem II season

During the 1998–99 Dutch football season, Willem II competed in the Eredivisie. Willem II achieved second place in the league, the club's best placement to date.

Willem II
1998–99 season
ManagerCo Adriaanse
StadiumWillem II Stadion
Eredivisie2nd
KNVB CupFirst round
UEFA CupSecond round
Top goalscorerMariano Bombarda (17)

Season summary

Managed by Co Adriaanse, Willem II finished in fifth place in the 1997–98 Eredivisie, thereby securing qualification for the 1998–99 UEFA Cup.[1] In the UEFA Cup's first round the club knocked out Georgian side Dinamo Tbilisi with two 3–0 wins.[1] Willem II exited the competition in the second round, following a 1–1 draw and a 3–0 defeat against Spanish club Real Betis.[1] In the 1998–99 KNVB Cup Willem II were knocked out in the first round by FC Zwolle with Geoffrey Prommayon scoring an own-goal in a game that finished 2–0.[2]

Willem II achieved second place in the Eredivisie, the club's best placement to date, qualifying for the UEFA Champions League for the first time in the club's history.[3] Argentina forward Mariano Bombarda was one of the most important players during the season, scoring 17 goals.[4] At the winter break, Willem II was in 11th place.[1] Thanks to a very successful run in the second half of the season, with only one defeat on the final day of the season against FC Twente, the club climbed to second place.[1]

Willem II sold 10,000 season tickets for the season and drew a total of 204,780 spectators.[1]

In May 1999, it was chosen as club of the season by the VVCS, the trade union of professional footballers in the Netherlands.[1]

First-team squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
— GK Netherlands NED Jim van Fessem
— GK Belgium BEL Kris Mampaey
— DF Netherlands NED Reinder Hendriks
— DF Netherlands NED Delano Hill
— DF Finland FIN Sami Hyypiä
— DF Netherlands NED Joris Mathijsen
— DF Netherlands NED Mark Schenning
— DF Hungary HUN István Szekér
— DF Netherlands NED Frank van Kouwen
— DF Netherlands NED Jos van Nieuwstadt
— DF Thailand THA Geoffrey Prommayon
— MF Netherlands NED Yassine Abdellaoui
— MF Netherlands NED Arno Arts
No. Pos. Nation Player
— MF Czech Republic CZE Tomáš Galásek
— MF Morocco MAR Adil Ramzi
— MF Netherlands NED Dennis Schulp
— MF Netherlands NED Raymond Victoria
— FW Argentina ARG Mariano Bombarda
— FW The Gambia GAM Jatto Ceesay
— FW Netherlands NED Marco Heering
— FW Netherlands NED Erwin Hermes
— FW Netherlands NED Huub Loeffen
— FW Netherlands NED Marino Promes
— FW Burkina Faso BFA Ousmane Sanou
— FW Netherlands NED Marcel Valk

Transfers

Out

Competitions

Eredivisie
Main article: 1998–99 Eredivisie

League table

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Feyenoord (C) 34 25 5 4 76 38 +38 80 Qualification to Champions League
2 Willem II 34 20 5 9 69 46 +23 65
3 PSV 34 17 10 7 87 55 +32 61 Qualification to Champions League: 3rd qualifying round
4 Vitesse Arnhem 34 18 7 9 61 44 +17 61 Qualification to UEFA Cup[lower-alpha 1]
5 Roda JC 34 17 9 8 59 40 +19 60
Source: rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Head-to-head points; 5) Head-to-head goal difference; 6) Head-to-head away goals scored; 7) Play-off if relevant for deciding champion, relegation or participating in a European league, otherwise by draw. 8) Penalty shoot-out (only after a play-off)
(C) Champions
Notes:
  1. Ajax qualified for the UEFA Cup by winning the 1998–99 KNVB Cup.

KNVB Cup
Main article: 1998–99 KNVB Cup

Results
28 October 1998 R1 Willem II 0–2 FC Zwolle Tilburg, Netherlands
Report 55' Tuhuteru
83' (o.g.) Prommayon		 Stadium: Gemeentelijk Sportpark Tilburg

UEFA Cup
Main article: 1998–99 UEFA Cup

Results
15 September 1998 R1 First leg Willem II Netherlands 3–0 Georgia (country) Dinamo Tbilisi Koning Willem II Stadion, Tilburg
18:30 (CET) Ramzi 74'
Arts 80'
Schenning 86'		 Report Attendance: 10,000
Referee: Mikko Vuorela (Finland)
29 September 1998 R1 Second leg Dinamo Tbilisi Georgia (country) 0–3
(0–6 agg.)		 Netherlands Willem II Boris Paichadze National Stadium, Tbilisi
16:30 (CET) Report Valk 19'
Ceesay 81'
Ramzi 89'		 Attendance: 8,000
Referee: Lubomír Puček (Czech Republic)
20 October 1998 R2 First leg Willem II Netherlands 1–1 Spain Real Betis Koning Willem II Stadion, Tilburg
20:00 (CET) Bombarda 86' Report Trujillo 85' Attendance: 12,000
Referee: William Young (Scotland)
3 November 1998 R2 Second leg Real Betis Spain 3–0
(4–1 agg.)		 Netherlands Willem II Estadio Benito Villamarín, Seville
21:30 (CET) George 29'
Benjamín 56'
Fernando 89'		 Report Attendance: 15,000
Referee: Jacek Granat (Poland)

References
  1. "1997-1999: Weer Europa in". Willem II (in Dutch). Retrieved 18 May 2022.
  2. "Willem II 0-2 PEC Zwolle". besoccer.com. Retrieved 18 May 2022.
  3. van Dijk, Bob (18 May 2022). "Dit waren de beste seizoenen van Willem II in de Eredivisie". Elf Voetbal (in Dutch). Retrieved 18 May 2022.
  4. Verstraten, Ruud (23 June 2017). "Tilburg voelt als thuis voor nomade Bombarda". Brabants Dagblad (in Dutch). Retrieved 18 May 2022.
  5. "Bert Konterman verruilt Willem II voor Feyenoord" [Bert Konterman exchanges Willem II for Feyenoord]. Trouw (in Dutch). 12 May 1998. Retrieved 19 May 2022.
  6. Damström, Annika (16 February 1998). "Joonas Kolkan uudeksi seuraksi PSV Eindhoven" [The new company of Joonas Kolka is PSV Eindhoven]. Helsingin Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 19 May 2022.
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