Sparta boss Maurice Steijn is still looking for his first win in his second tenure at the Rotterdam-based club. The 51-year-old managed Ajax in the early stages of their tumultuous previous campaign and got sacked in October 2023.
An uninspiring first half saw Sparta get the bulk of the chances with Norwegian striker Tobias Lauritsen claiming the biggest opportunity with a header in the eleventh minute.
Shortly after Lauritsen’s header, however, the match abruptly got interrupted after a share of the home supporters launched fireworks onto the pitch in a supposed protest against stadium bans. The game got put on hold for 45 minutes before getting restarted by referee Serdar Gozubuyuk.
It did not take the visitors long to break the deadlock after the break: Japanese winger Shunsuke Mito smartly got in front of his man and turned the cross from Camiel Neghli into the opening goal.
Sparta, which had not won a league game since September 2024, had very little to fear from a lacklustre Heracles side which could not manage to fire a shot on goal after the thirteenth minute of the game. Heracles goalkeeper Fabian de Keijzer stopped the Spartans in their tracks several times, keeping his side firmly in the game.
Late heartbreak prevented the Rotterdam side from earning its first three points in over three months: a free kick caused by Marvin Young, who got his second yellow card for the foul on Thomas Bruns, didn’t get saved properly by Sparta goalkeeper Nick Olij and got turned into a stoppage time equalizer by centre-half Justin Hoogma.
A late goal prevented Sparta from earning three valuable points for the second time in three games, leaving Maurice Steijn’s men in sixteenth place. Heracles stays put and still holds the fifteenth spot in the table.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Fabian de Keijzer (Heracles Almelo)
