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Danko Lazovic and Ibrahim Afellay scored first half goals to secure victory for defending champions PSV at AZ, but PSV's' interim head coach Sef Vergoossen was not willing to look upon his side's victory as another significant step towards retaining their title. 'The end of the season is a long way away. It's nice to be top, but there's still a long way to go yet with eleven games to go', said Vergoossen at the post-match press conference, adding that he had not been impressed with his team's performance.
'We worked hard but did not put on a particularly sparkling display', he started his analysis. 'We lacked composure, defended too deeply and frequently lost possession. Yet I don't think we have snatched victory here. We could have scored two more goals.' Vergoossen thought that PSV should have done better football wise. 'We spent a lot of energy correcting mistakes. We must remain alert as we face a hectic fixture list. We have played six high-profile games in quick succession and we will have a double meeting with Helsingborgs IF in the UEFA Cup in February, so it is tough challenge to stay physically fit.'
Ibrahim Afellay, who scored PSV's second goal of the night after 25 minutes, agreed that the title race is far from over. 'Just look at what happened last season. We are well organised and are rock-solid defensively. We have created many chances tonight, but, again, we still have a long way to go.'
Louis van Gaal thought that AZ are not scoring enough goals this season. 'PSV have netted two goals and we didn't score a goal. That was the difference. They crossed the middle line for the first time in the 13th minute and scored the opening goal from their first chance. We had a flying start, but we faced an uphill battle once PSV had broken the deadlock. We conceded the second goal too easily. Just like in the first half, we created plenty of chances after the break as well, but we lacked cutting edge up front. I think we have put on a battling display', concluded Van Gaal.
