Producing a matchday programme for a midweek cup tie against an amateur side often requires a rushed turnaround from the editorial and layout teams. Usually, this goes unnoticed. But on page 16 of the October 2013 KNVB Cup programme against VV Capelle, the layout department at Scholma Druk made a spectacular, hilarious blunder that accidentally created a brilliant historical time capsule.
The page features the “OPSTELLINGEN” (Line-ups) grid, designed for fans to write in the starting elevens with a pen once they are announced over the stadium speakers. To help the fans, the editors pre-printed the official squad list of FC Groningen on the left. However, a quick glance at the names reveals a massive problem. Listed at number 4 is Virgil van Dijk. At number 7 is Leandro Bacuna. At number 8 is Tim Sparv.
The problem? It was October 2013. Van Dijk had already been sold to Celtic in June. Bacuna was playing in the Premier League for Aston Villa. Sparv was in Germany. In the rush to print the booklet, the editors had simply copy-pasted the squad template from the previous 2012/2013 season and forgot to update it. For the hardcore fans in the Euroborg, seeing these departed heroes listed as available substitutes for a cup match against an amateur side must have provided a great pre-match laugh.
A Look into the Future
While it was a simple editorial mistake, this “ghost roster” serves as a stark reminder of the incredible talent drain FC Groningen experienced in the summer of 2013. The players mistakenly listed on this page went on to conquer the footballing world. Virgil van Dijk became a Champions League winner and the captain of the Netherlands, while Leandro Bacuna enjoyed a long, lucrative career in English football. This printed error is a funny, accidental monument to the ghosts of the Euroborg’s recent past.