Wout Weghorst challenges FC Twente’s reputation ahead of Excelsior test
Wout Weghorst has pushed back against the idea that FC Twente are prone to faltering when the pressure is on, insisting the club must judge itself by its current performances rather than past disappointments. The striker’s comments come after Twente’s impressive 2-0 away victory over AZ and ahead of a potentially revealing Eredivisie meeting with Excelsior.
For Twente, the win in Alkmaar was an important statement. But as technical director Erik ten Hag recently warned, a strong result against a leading opponent will count for little if the team cannot maintain its standards in the next fixture. That challenge has sharpened the focus on Twente’s consistency—and on a reputation Weghorst believes the squad should no longer accept.
Weghorst rejects talk of a recurring Twente weakness
Ten Hag suggested that FC Twente have sometimes struggled to deliver at decisive moments, particularly when facing teams lower in the standings. Weghorst understands why the subject has been raised, but he does not want it to become an accepted description of the club.
“I hear it a little too often: that we lose to clubs in the bottom half of the table,” Weghorst said in an interview with Tubantia. “That’s something I don’t take too well.”
The Netherlands international, who has earned 53 caps for his country, said such a result should not be treated as inevitable. Previous setbacks may be part of Twente’s history, he argued, but they do not have to shape the team’s next performance.
“It must not even be an option for that to happen to us again,” he said. “If it happened in the past, fine, but that’s in the past. The manager has said that to us as well. We’re looking at the present, at today, so that we don’t make the same mistakes again.”
Why the Excelsior fixture matters
Twente’s upcoming match against Excelsior offers an immediate opportunity to support that message with action. After beating AZ on the road, the challenge is to carry the same concentration and competitive edge into a different kind of game. Matches against lower-ranked opposition can demand patience, discipline and sharp decision-making, especially when the favourite is expected to control possession and create chances.
That makes this fixture more than a routine league date. A convincing performance would strengthen Twente’s position and help quiet criticism about inconsistency. A disappointing result, by contrast, could revive the very questions Weghorst is keen to put behind the club. In that sense, the match carries a psychological dimension as well as its usual importance in the Eredivisie standings.
Any football prediction for the contest will naturally consider Twente’s recent win, but form alone does not guarantee another positive result. The team will need to show that the victory over AZ was not an isolated high point. For Weghorst, the key is not dwelling on the opponent’s reputation or the pressure surrounding the game, but being ready to compete from the opening whistle until the final moment.
Utrecht defeat still a source of frustration
Weghorst’s concern is rooted in more than general talk about Twente’s past. He pointed to the team’s 1-2 home defeat against FC Utrecht two weeks earlier as an example of how quickly a promising performance can unravel. Twente, he recalled, played an excellent first half before allowing the match to slip away.
The defeat left him furious—not simply because the team lost, but because he felt the result was avoidable. In his view, Twente’s problems came during a brief spell when players were not fully alert and failed to carry out the basic responsibilities required of them.
“Look at how we played in the first half. It was so good,” he said. “That’s why I was absolutely furious that we threw it away like that. Simply by not being switched on for 15 minutes, not concentrating on the things you’re on the pitch to do.”
His comments underline a familiar truth in professional football: a team can perform well for long stretches and still lose through a short lapse in focus. A missed assignment, a slow reaction or a loss of concentration can change the momentum of a match, particularly when the opposition is able to capitalise quickly.
Concentration must last for the full match
Weghorst was careful to acknowledge that mistakes are inevitable. His point was that players must remain committed to winning every phase of the game, even after a strong start or a moment of adversity. For a striker, that means staying involved when chances are limited; for the team as a whole, it means maintaining organisation and intensity whether leading or trailing.
“You can make mistakes, that’s part of it,” he said. “But you must always make sure that you’re focused on winning every second of the match, every moment.”
That demand will be central against Excelsior. Twente will need to balance confidence from the AZ result with the discipline required to avoid another costly lapse. Weghorst’s message is not that the squad should ignore criticism altogether, but that it must not allow old narratives to distract from the work in front of it.
A chance to change the conversation
For FC Twente, the next performance can help determine whether the victory over AZ becomes the start of a consistent run or simply a standout result. Weghorst has made clear that he does not want the club defined by previous losses to lower-table sides. The most persuasive response, however, will come on the pitch.
If Twente maintain their focus, manage the key moments and show the same determination they displayed in Alkmaar, they can turn the Excelsior match into evidence of progress. The prediction debate may centre on form and expectations, but Weghorst’s central point is simpler: reputation is changed through repeated performances, and concentration cannot be switched on only when the opponent is a title contender.
