The report says Joey Veerman was sent off in the ninth minute after kicking Mexx Meerdink in the face. That left the defending league champions at a numerical disadvantage in front of their home supporters, forcing them to cover more ground and disrupting their ability to control the contest.
AZ reportedly made that advantage count before half-time. Meerdink, despite needing a bandage after the incident, headed in the opener in the 25th minute. The timing mattered: an early goal gave AZ a platform while PSV had less room to reorganise.
The report says Weslley Patati, Elijah Dijkstra and Ro-Zangelo Daal added three second-half goals in a 15-minute spell. That burst turned a one-goal lead into a rout and left little time for PSV to mount a response.
For AZ, the reported sequence offers an encouraging early sign: the team converted a numerical edge into a decisive scoreline rather than allowing the contest to drift. Still, the red card shaped the match, so the result alone cannot show how AZ will fare when opponents can keep eleven players on the pitch.
The next test is whether AZ can carry the confidence of a trophy into the opening weeks of the league campaign. PSV, meanwhile, will need to respond quickly and show that this setback does not define its season.