10 Mar 2011: Ajax - FC Spartak Moskva

[Van basten]

Look at your brother Siem..

[Amol]

I know all of us have been saying this - but I'm really loving this Ajax team under Frank De Boer. After years and years, it seems like we're playing with a plan. A plan which is understood by all the players and is being executed well.

We would've scored 3 or 4 goals today if we had a real striker and a midfielder who doesn't hit open headers at the goalkeeper. For the past 5-6 years we had a team full of puzzles. Now, we know which exact position needs to be fixed.

HUP AJAX. See you gentlemen on Sunday.

[SPL]

You all have said it how do you lose a game when they have one shot at goal in 90 mins . We had loads of chances but when Enoh a defensive mf comes on for an attacking Mf when we are 1-0 down
words fail me .If you are going to go into a game like this without a central striker you are going to have trouble scoring . De Zeeuw had a couple of chances but dealt with them like the defender he is .
Why did Siem carry on as a striker when Cvitanich was left on the bench ???

If we are going to carry on with no striker then next week we will be out of Europe and I doubt we will finish 2nd in the league

[Orange14]

One move of individual brilliance and a keeper that made every save he had to was the sum total of this match. We outplayed them in every other facet of the match save about 10 minutes in the second half. Both of our wingers played well constantly beating their man. De Zeeuw had a good match and was unlucky. Eriksen had a couple of moments of brilliance but also more than a couple of times thinking he was Leo Messi and could win the match single handedly (he really should shut up about going to Barcelona; he's not ready for anything other than the Eredivisie at this point in time and until he can prove that he can dominate our league forget about any move out of town). Anita was solid as were our two Belgian central defenders (though Vertonghen is sometimes scary marauding forward as he sometimes loses the ball potentially conceding a breakaway). Blind is afraid to go forward but did contain McGeady pretty well in the match. IMO van der Wiel is a real liability. Can anyone tell me the last time he had a decent cross? I've continued harping on the fact that he has no left foot at all and he doesn't possess any kind of speed to represent a danger out there (I'm sorry I have to be so negative but that's how I see it; if we can get the €12M for him we should take the money and put it to better use). I have nothing good to say about de Jong's play (he should spend a lot of time learning how to get a snap shot off).

The tie can still be won as Spartak's defense is no better than a grade school team (don't know if this term is commonly used in Europe or not) and I don't think their keeper can continue to play at this level. Of course it could be zero degrees and snowing next week. We'll see.

[Orange14]

Just looked at the match statistics: 23 shots, 15 on goal to 3 and 2 for Spartak. 64% possession but 14 big saves from the MOTM Dikan.

[Amol]

The more I think about the Enoh for De Zeeuw substitution, the more I think that de Boer wanted to keep the score at 0-1 and keep us alive for the return game. We would've been completely screwed if we would've let another one in while going all out for the equalizer. Well, that's just my reading of the substitution.

[souras84]

Well, what's done, is done! Who thinks we can turn it around next week? If only a proper number 9 played. Maybe a resurrected Hamdaoui... The football law was implimented today.

[Orange14]

The more I think about the Enoh for De Zeeuw substitution, the more I think that de Boer wanted to keep the score at 0-1 and keep us alive for the return game. We would've been completely screwed if we would've let another one in while going all out for the equalizer. Well, that's just my reading of the substitution.

I don't think the substitution mattered one bit. Anita is good on the ball and can slot up to play higher up. He is no better and no worse as an attacking threat than Demy. de Boer doesn't have many alternatives at this point in time until Lodeiro is match fit (Lindgren is certainly not a realistic choice).

[Rooie]

Well, these things happen. Best match under De Boer, tough luck.

[Kowalczyk]

Frustrating. A very good performance, good position play, plenty of chances (including a few sitters), but no striker, no luck - and a very unfortunate defeat. This ain't over yet, tho. We're a better football team than Spartak Moscow.

k.

[Monkey Tonk]

"Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee."

Happy that Ajax is turning from caterpillar into butterfly?
Or shocked at the total lack of sting?

I don't know what to think. My feelings are very mixed. But I'm not going to give professional soccer players the benefit of the doubt for not being able to pull the trigger. If this was a gun fight, Ajax got shot, and the other guy did not. "Yeah, I got shot, but it's ok." Really? After firing at a ratio of a machine gun against a pistol?

I would have been ok with 0-0, but to give up that goal on top of it? C'mon.

[Orange14]

Weather next Thursday in Moscow calls for sunny skies with a high of 3 degrees during the day and a low of -4 in the early morning hours. It won't be nearly as bad as what Twente faced when they played Rubin Kazan in the Spartak stadium last month.

[Venezuelan Ajacied]

Damn I had to grab my hair when I saw the stats, talk about bad luck. If we had tied the game the mission would had still been the same, we simply have to score in Moscow. If there's something this team has shown us is that its resilient on the road, and one things for sure lightning does not strike in the same place twice, if we bomb the russian keeper like we did today then something will sure as hell go in.

Like everybody has said.....it aint over yet !!!

[Venezuelan Ajacied]

Weather next Thursday in Moscow calls for sunny skies with a high of 3 degrees during the day and a low of -4 in the early morning hours. It won't be nearly as bad as what Twente faced when they played Rubin Kazan in the Spartak stadium last month.

Maybe we can ask them some advice ??? That spanking of Zenit was pretty darn impressive...

[Rubin Stark]

Nine times out of 10, Ajax would win this game by a few goals. But this is football - it happens.

They played well, so it's a good sign - more promising than if they had played like powderpuffs and got a result.

[Philippe]

Football is about scoring goals, remember ?
Of course, we were much better that S.Moscow. They were one of the weakest side I ever saw in European competition. Except their goalie who made some crazy saves.
We were so hopeless when it came to scoring that it became almost funny. The game could have lasted 3 hours, we would not have scored a goal.
Come on Franck, stop the nonsense and bring El Hamdaoui back.

[Manneken Pis]

I found it somewhat ironic that Huntelaar was sitting in one of the hospitality boxes last night....

[Kowalczyk]

Weather next Thursday in Moscow calls for sunny skies with a high of 3 degrees during the day and a low of -4 in the early morning hours. It won't be nearly as bad as what Twente faced when they played Rubin Kazan in the Spartak stadium last month.

Maybe we can ask them some advice ??? That spanking of Zenit was pretty darn impressive...

Nah, Twente weren't that impressive. Ironically, their game was very similar to Ajax's, except that Zenit were Ajax and Twente were Spartak.

Zenit dominated most of the time, they played well, they created chances, but they kept wasting them and Twente's goalkeeper had a great day. Twente converted pretty much all of the chances they had.

Of course they did a better job than Ajax ('cos football is all about scoring goals), but they were a bit fortunate - whereas Ajax were very UNfortunate.

K.

[SPL]

I think we need El H back in the team.Sure Siem works hard but he had about 4 or 5 chances but is not a natural goalscorer.Siem should be playing in midfield in place of Demy. De Zeeuw has looked better these last 2 games playing forward but he is a defensive player by nature and the attacking role should be given to Siem.I still cannot fathom why Enoh replaced him as sub.
Cvitanich is clearly not rated and if he is not going to be used in a game where we are losing 1-0 with no striker on the field then there is no point in even putting him on the bench ,trouble is the only alternative Castillion is not ready yet after a long injury. That leaves just 1 sub attacker, Ozbiliz and I have not been impressed with him and not sure he is even ready for this level!! Jozefzoon looked better when he was sub and has even been picked in the Dutch U21 squad this week whereas Ozbiliz hasn't .

[Kowalczyk]

The day after...

I have to say: I am genuinely excited. I don't give a shit about the result. We played like AJax, we looked good, we were creative.

I seriously, genuinely believe we're moving into the right direction under Frank de Boer.

0-1, too bad, but let's not get depressed about it. Spring is in the air at the ArenA. I am convinced of it.

K.

[orange goblin]

I have this feeling too.

[Orange14]

The day after...

I have to say: I am genuinely excited. I don't give a shit about the result. We played like AJax, we looked good, we were creative.

I seriously, genuinely believe we're moving into the right direction under Frank de Boer.

0-1, too bad, but let's not get depressed about it. Spring is in the air at the ArenA. I am convinced of it.

K.

To add to this with some perspective, here are the ages of our starting lineup yesterday:

Steks: 28
van der Wiel: 23
Alderweireld: 22
Vertonghen: 24
Blind: 20
Anita: 22
de Zeeuw: 27
Eriksen: 19
Ebecilio: 19
de Jong: 22
Sulejmani: 22

This is a team that plays beyond their years!! Amazing!

[aveslacker]

I have this feeling too.

Very true. As disappointing as last night was, it was nice to us play like Ajax again. Eriksen has so much talent, he just needs to develop the tactical knowledge to go with it. There's a lot to be excited about with this team.

Still, it would have been nice to have put this one away in the home leg.

[souras84]

http://www.goal.com/en/news/11/transfer ... ke-striker

Speaking of the devil

[Venezuelan Ajacied]

Talk about a dream scenario....guess we can only wait (and hope) this turns out to be true.