PSV Eindhoven’s Luuk de Jong and Malik Tillman scored second-half goals to help retain the Dutch league title in a nervous 3-1 victory at Sparta Rotterdam as their side held off Ajax Amsterdam’s challenge in Sunday’s final round of matches.
PSV lifted the title they won last season to take their overall tally to 26, 10 behind Ajax, as they finished the season with 79 points from 34 games, one ahead of their great rivals from Amsterdam.
Ivan Perisic put PSV ahead after 27 minutes but when Gjivai Zechiel equalised for Sparta, Ajax, who at one stage had a nine-point lead in the title race, took over at the top of the table as they went on to win 2-0 at home to FC Twente.
But De Jong restored PSV’s lead after 58 minutes and when Tillman rifled in a third from the edge of the box with six minutes remaining, the visitors were able to celebrate their seventh win in a row and claiming the league championship.
At 61 years and 178 days, PSV coach Peter Bosz is the oldest manager to win the Dutch league.
“It was a bit exciting, wasn’t it?”, De Jong told reporters.
“In the first half there was nothing wrong, then it becomes 1-1 and you think: ‘It won’t be one of those days, will it?’ We were playing well, but you still have to score that goal. At 3-1 you know the job is done.”
Ajax managed two points from their previous 12 going into the final day, which breathed new life into a title race that they seemed to have sewn up in mid-April.
They took the lead through Jordan Henderson against Twente to briefly jump into provisional first place but that lasted only 30 seconds before Perisic headed home from close range to give PSV the lead in Rotterdam.
When Zechiel equalised for Sparta after 52 minutes with a goal that had been coming, Ajax again returned to the summit.
But De Jong fired home from close-range to restore PSV’s lead and Tillmen added the third goal with a fine strike.
Feyenoord finished in the third and final Champions League place despite a 2-0 loss at Heerenveen, though they will have to go through the qualifiers.
