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20th Nov 2016

Feyenoord fans’ display of solidarity after player loses his mother is genuinely moving

Incredible scenes.

Ben Kiely

Feyenoord are more than just a football club, they’re a family.

When one of their family members was grieving the loss of a loved one, the fans stepped up and made sure to show solidarity with the bereaved.

Feyenoord midfielder Tonny Vilhena’s mother Jeanette passed away after a long battle with illness at the end of October. At the Eredivisie club’s first home game since her passing, the Feyenoord fans stepped up and to used the opportunity to show their support for the 21-year-old in this difficult time.

Ahead of their match against PEC Zwolle on Sunday, the home crowd inside De Kuip paid a beautiful tribute by lighting thousands of sparklers in the stand as the teams walked out onto the pitch.

Along with the light show, the fans also belted out the club’s anthem, You’ll Never Walk Alone. Although this is staple chant of De Kuip, those famous lyrics popularised by Gerry and the Pacemakers seemed so much more meaningful on this occasion.

https://twitter.com/HumorAoPontape/status/800410996519161856

With a showing like that, you got the feeling that no one was beating Feyenoord that day. Sure enough, the side rose to the occasion and defeated their opponents 3-0.

Former Liverpool man Dirk Kuyt, ex-Aston Villa midfielder Karim El Ahmadi and Jens Toornstra bagged the goals for the home side. However, the result didn’t matter much in the grand scheme of things. On this day, football was merely a support act to the wonderful display of humanity from the fans to their player.

https://twitter.com/Juezcentral/status/800412628115984384

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