Holman: We Can Still Hit Back

as seen on au.fourfourtwo.com

Socceroo Brett Holman believes his Dutch champion side AZ Alkmaar can hit back despite a poor start which has seen them lose five of their last six matches.

AZ are currently eighth on the Eredivisie table, having lost six matches already this season compared to four for the whole of last campaign when they won the title.

And the 25-year-old Australian midfielder, who has been in good form this season scoring once in the Eredivisie and providing a number of goal assists, believes AZ have shown glimpses of their best.

AZ's latest league defeat was a 4-2 loss to Ajax on the weekend, after a fine first-half where they took a 1-0 lead into the break before the Amsterdam club hit back with four second-half goals.

Holman told the AZ website: "I think that the break came at a bad time. We played fantastic in the first-half, Moussa Dembele and Maarten Martens had good opportunities.

"After the break, we were very poor. Going to 1-1 was quite unexpected. We could've have actually been 2-0 up, but suddenly it was level.

"And then incredibly quickly it was 2-1 and the match was totally vice versa. That was very regrettable for us."

He added: "3-1 was the last straw. Then Ajax could easily play it around.

"It is disappointing that after the break we couldn't sustain the level of the first-half. We were not tough enough. We increasingly lost the second ball, where before the break that was rarely the case."

Holman believes the weekend's effort has been typical of their season so far, as AZ struggle to string together a full 90 minute performance.

AZ are also having a tough time adjusting to life in the UEFA Champions League although Holman has reason for optimism after their draw with Arsenal in the last matchday round.

"In principle, we have taken many positives from the Ajax match and the game against Arsenal last Tuesday," he said. "Certainly, at times against Arsenal we played well. And on Sunday, in the first-half, we were at a high level.

"We will take that into Wednesday when we face SV Spakenburg in the Cup."
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