Rondón double downs PSV as Zenit march on
Thursday, February 26, 2015
Article summary
FC Zenit 3-0 PSV Eindhoven (agg: 4-0)
José Rondón registered twice and Hulk struck a fine effort from distance as the hosts eased through to the round of 16 in St Petersburg.
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• José Rondón double and Hulk's long ranger seal Zenit progress
• PSV's Luuk de Jong misses 61st-minute penalty
• Russian side maintain 100% record of advancing to last 16
• PSV suffer fourth defeat in a row to Russian opponents this season
• Follow Friday's round of 16 draw on UEFA.com, with live streaming from 13.00CET
FC Zenit maintained their 100% record of advancing to the last 16 since the introduction of the group stage in 2004/05 after completing a 4-0 aggregate victory against PSV Eindhoven.
Guarding a 1-0 advantage from last week's round of 32 opener, the hosts – who have won all eight home games in the competition now – seized control of the tie via José Rondón in the first half and sealed their progress with two more goals after the interval, Hulk and Rondón putting the outcome beyond doubt.
André Villas-Boas's charges applied a positive approach to the game and twice called PSV goalkeeper Jeroen Zoet into action during the opening exchanges. Rondón's ninth-minute attempt was rebuffed by Zoet before Hulk tested the 24-year-old with a right-footed effort.
With Memphis Depay, Georginio Wijnaldum and Jetro Willems being kept quiet by the Russian side, the visitors struggled to make an impression. Indeed, Zenit would exploit their strong start by scoring the opener. Sine-belo-golubye captain Danny found Venezuela striker Rondón in space and the No23 broke the deadlock, applying a calm finish from inside the area with 29 minutes gone. Moments later, centre-back Ezequiel Garay missed a wonderful opportunity to double the advantage – firing over from close range after a flick-on at a corner.
Seeking a response, Phillip Cocu's men suffered a further setback when Hulk, a constant menace, buried a powerful effort from distance shortly after the restart. Just 13 minutes later, PSV were presented with a glorious chance to begin their recovery via a penalty. However, home custodian Yuri Lodygin kept out Luuk de Jong's spot kick, and Zenit promptly sealed their progress when Rondón pounced on a rebound after Zoet had failed to hold Hulk's drive.
