Ajax Through in UEFA Cup
By: Matt |
3 Comments
We did enough last week with a terrific win at HSV to stroll on through to the knockout rounds come spring after the Hamburgers avenged their loss to us with a win against Slavia. We can finish no worse than third in the group now. I would expect this advancement satisfies the minimum requirement we could have hoped for, but what does it mean for the club? And what should we expect now?
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Category: Team News
We Knew This Day Would Come…
By: Matt | 9 Comments
Preliminary reports are claiming that KJH is on his way to Real Madrid come January. Real panicked now that Ruud is ruled out for the year, and so they decided to fork over the cash for his replacement. I have been writing about this since last summer, so I am not going to act like this is a surprise (although I did not expect a January move). Nor am I going to act like this is the end of Ajax’s ambitions for this season…
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Category: Team NewsGive Urby a Hand
By: Matt | 7 Comments
…by sorting out this mess. Once upon a time he was the obvious successor to Gio van Bronckhorst at Oranje left back. But then Gio never retired, and Urby never developed adequate defensive skills. Now Gio is still at it, and Urby is no longer picked. And at Ajax, Jan Vertonghen has moved in at left back, marking and tackling where Urby could not. Now Urby is without a position, appearing sometimes in the midfield and sometimes up on the wing. And he is not happy about it. Now, if we here on the offside can just figure out where to play Urby, this whole situation can have a happy ending.
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Category: Team NewsGiving Credit and Giving Thanks
By: Matt | Add Comments
I am late with my post-match remarks following our loss to AZ, so I am gonna keep them concise.
> Full credit to AZ. We exposed PSV last week, and then we got exposed by AZ. I hate being right, but I think we did get outclassed by a savvy side. We had the ball enough, but they had an edge we could not match. I was impressed by the way they had an answer for nearly every attack we mustered.
> Many thanks to Kenny Vermeer. If there was any question about Vermeer’s status as heir apparent to Steks (should he choose to leave someday), it should be kept quiet now. He was the reason this did not get ugly. I don’t think Steks has anything to fear at Ajax right now, but I can see Vermeer challenging for a spot with the Oranje after a few years of regular playing time. Somebody is gonna be the next va der Saar. I am impressed with the youngster (and gushing too much, I expect).
> While Suarez was good last week, a snowy away match against a wily opponent is when you need a deadly clinical finisher to bag a half-chance or two. KJH does this. No one else on our roster even comes close. No credit here, and no thanks to Suarez as an out-and-out striker.
Now, we get a look at our UEFA Cup standings:
Group F Pld Pts
Aston Villa 2 6
Hamburg 1 3
Ajax 2 3
Slavia 1 0
Žilina 2 0
I would say that we need at least a result from one of our last two matches, maybe even two. Four points would remove all doubt. Three would be dicey. One or two would probably leave us in danger of getting bounced. We are in a good spot, but let’s not make our match against Slavia in December an elimination game, yeah?
The Hamburgers will be putting a good squad on the pitch, but injuries have hit them pretty hard, too. Their Dutch contingent, minus on Raphael van der Vart after his fiasco, will be missing Nigel de Jong, but Joris Mathijsen is healthy enough.
If you want a good, up-to-the-minute match preview, I am going to send you to Chris. He is sympathetic to Ajax, too, although he will undoubtedly by leaning the other way when the ball is kicked. I am off for the American holiday, set to eat turkey and watch American football (forgive me). Guilty pleasures all around.
Category: Team NewsBig Weekend, Part Two
By: Matt | 2 Comments
Last week we smashed PSV, and this week we face AZ. The boys from Alkmaar under some guy named Louis currently sit fourth in the table. They are on a decent run of form, and they look like a major player again this year. We sent a message last week, and that message will only resonate more with a result here. Defeating PSV proved that the title race was wide open. Taking three points from AZ will make clear that the road to this year’s eredivisie runs through the Amsterdam ArenA.
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Category: Team NewsHow We Got Here…
By: Matt | 7 Comments
Back on 5 October, after a difficult defeat at the hands of Heerenveen (a team we usually own), I am sure we were all pretty discouraged. Since that match, however, Ajax has taken all the points in six straight matches. What happened?
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Category: Team NewsStunning
By: Matt | 7 Comments
Simply incredible. I know PSV has been struggling mightily, and the match was in Amsterdam, but if you were expecting this result, you are either very shrewd or insane. 4-1 Ajax. I am stunned. If you want a concise match summary, my excellent colleague can give you that here. If you want to know how stunned I am, read on.
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Category: Team NewsBig Weekend, Part One
By: Matt | Add Comments
Just when you thought it was safe to claim that the eredivisie had a “big four”, the big four have fabulously refused to cooperate. The last few years just do not support this thesis. PSV won’t share the title, Feyenoord quits trying in the second half, AZ chooses to collapse instead, and Ajax has been far too inconsistent to earn a codified honorific. Meanwhile, FC Twente plays in the CL and NAC Breda sits at the top of the table. So, to make the claim that the title will be won or lost for Ajax this weekend and next is more than a bit suspect.
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Category: Team NewsLame Preview For Our Lame Team
By: Matt | 1 Comment
Today we play our second match of the KNVB Cup, and I am hating the random draw so far. FC Volendam will be our second eredivisie team in as many matches. Assuming we win, and it is far from an easy assumption, we deserve to draw some amateur squad from the countryside, yeah? Well, probably not. As for the match itself, first eleven guys to walk onto the pitch without a noticeable limp will play.
Yes, even you, Kennedy.
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Category: Team NewsHas KJH Played His Last Game as Ajacied?
By: Matt | 2 Comments
I’ll cut the suspense out early: I am saying no. But the news from the MRI is not good. Klaas is looking at around 6 weeks, putting a comeback date somewhere near the end of the December. Might as well hold him out until after the break, then, assuming he is not sold in January like some are claiming will be the case. Warning: this entire post is devoted to KJH.
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Category: Team News
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