Sunderland 1–0 AZ Alkmaar
- Le Fée 66' (pen.)
16 September 2026
The match in data
A 1–0 win for Sunderland against AZ Alkmaar on 16 September 2026, in the 2026-27 Europa League (League Stage 1).
Player of the match: Granit Xhaka (Sunderland), rated 63, thanks above all to 13 final-third passes and 9 recoveries. Xhaka produced 1.2 times as much as a midfielder typically does, at 0.7 times the cost.
For AZ Alkmaar, the highest-rated player was Elijah Dijkstra, with 56.
Granit Xhaka
Sunderland · 90'
Produced 1.21× and cost 0.67× their position's average
- 13 final-third passes 2.2×
- 9 recoveries 2.1×
- 50 passes 1.1×
- 7 misplaced passes 1.1×
- 1 failed dribble 1.4×
Match ratings
Everyone who played, sorted by rating. No rating: goalkeepers and anyone who played under 20 minutes.
| Player | Position | Min | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| Granit Xhaka ★ | Midfielder | 90 | 63 |
| Malick Fofana | Forward | 67 | 60 |
| Dan Ballard | Defender | 38 | 57 |
| Brian Brobbey | Forward | 23 | 57 |
| Nilson Angulo | Forward | 23 | 57 |
| Omar Alderete | Defender | 52 | 56 |
| Reinildo Mandava | Defender | 90 | 55 |
| Wilson Isidor | Forward | 67 | 54 |
| Enzo Le Fée | Midfielder | 90 | 51 |
| Trai Hume | Defender | 67 | 47 |
| Noah Sadiki | Midfielder | 90 | 42 |
| Thomas Meunier | Defender | 23 | 42 |
| Nordi Mukiele | Defender | 90 | 32 |
| Kevin Danso | Defender | 84 | 29 |
| Robin Roefs | Goalkeeper | 90 | no rating |
| Chris Rigg | Midfielder | 6 | no rating |
| Player | Position | Min | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elijah Dijkstra | Defender | 90 | 56 |
| Mexx Meerdink | Forward | 83 | 52 |
| Lewis Schouten | Defender | 83 | 51 |
| Valdemar Byskov | Midfielder | 31 | 51 |
| Ro-Zangelo Daal | Forward | 90 | 45 |
| Kees Smit | Midfielder | 59 | 45 |
| Jordy Clasie | Midfielder | 76 | 39 |
| Wouter Goes | Defender | 90 | 38 |
| Ayoub Oufkir | Forward | 46 | 36 |
| Weslley Patati | Forward | 44 | 35 |
| Peer Koopmeiners | Midfielder | 90 | 34 |
| Mateo Chávez | Defender | 90 | 26 |
| Jari De Busser | Goalkeeper | 90 | no rating |
| Dave Kwakman | Midfielder | 14 | no rating |
| Calvin Stengs | Midfielder | 7 | no rating |
| Jizz Hornkamp | Forward | 7 | no rating |
How is the rating calculated?
The rating measures a single match: what the player produced against what they cost, compared with the average for their position in that league and season, and adjusted by position (a 70 for a forward is as hard to get as a 70 for a defender). A normal match is around 50, 70 is already very good and only one in a hundred goes above 80. It is not the NVP, which ranks the whole season.