27 Feb 2014: FC Red Bull Salzburg - Ajax

[Van basten]

Wonder in which place we would be in Eredivisie if we would have to play with Denswil and Van der Horn as central defenders

[souras84]

Laughable De Jong and I agree with Orange. It's all about the midfield. Eriksen and Duarte could do the job.

[Tom_]

van der Hoorn is turning into the King of Own Goals, not a good title to have.

It's unbelievable. He made some really costly mistakes in the Jong at the start of the season. Is he just really unlucky, or what? At least we have a UEFA cup goalscorer...

[Orange14]

This is really too sad.

[Orange14]

Nice, but too late.

[souras84]

Just when my link died on me, we scored. Anyway, very humiliating.

[SPL]

Woeful performance. Should have taken the young reserves and played them.

[kezme44]

pathetic

just tells you how poor the dutch league is

[Orange14]

Red Bull played just like a typical Marco Bielsa managed team, four players pressing up top and quickness enough to win almost every single free ball. Pretty unusual from a manager who was born and played in Germany. Ajax again had no clue about how to pass through the pressure and quite frankly none of our players has the necessary quickness or ball skills to do so. The technical staff at Ajax really needs to take a hard look at this match and the type of players coming up through the youth system. Unless we are training some quick midfielders the future will be quite dismal outside the Eredivisie which is OK if that's all they aspire to. Amazed again at how naive FdB was with a week to prepare for this match. There were really no tactical changes at all in terms of the approach. The lack of quickness in the midfield was stunning as I noted prior to the match. Good enough for the league is not good enough for Europe

Ratings:

FDB (-1) - didn't have his team prepared to play

Cillessen (5) - I guess none of the goals were his fault and he did get a lot of kicking practice in
Blind (5.5) - maybe the best player along with de Sa
Denswil (3) - absolutely terrible in the first half as he didn't realize that every player on Salzburg was quicker and smarter than him
van der Hoorn (4.5) - unfortunate own goal detracted from a slightly above average match
van Rhijn (4.5) - did very little on a night when he needed to step up
Poulsen (3.5) - terribly slow and not a good match for a team like this one
Klaassen (4.5) - did score a goal and what else???? That's right, nothing else.
de Jong (3.5) - too slow in the midfield
Duarte (4) - either play him in the midfield or sit him on the bench; he cannot play anywhere else
Sigthorrson (2.5) - very poor, unable to hold the ball up or do much at all, did have one attempt on goal but that's not enough
de Sa (5.5) - only on who seemed to want to try to make something happen and didn't quit for the full 90 minutes
Bojan (3.5) - non factor and disinterested except when he had the ball
Riederwald (4.5) - still young but did try to go forward
Andersen (4) - non-factor and appeared to give up when he should have gone after a couple of free balls

I don't think I can ever remember a two match tie when we looked so bad. Even when we were losing to Madrid in the CL there was more passion. This team was just lifeless!

[Tom_]

But you have to admit that Salzburg are a good team. Not sure how they manage to have such a good squad in such a small league, but I'd say they're better than two of the teams we faced in the CL this season.

[Pablo.V]

There is no doubt - Salzburg are a very good team and certainly better than ajax.
But the most annoying thing is the attitude of the coaching staff and the players.
They all have given up before the game even started.
There is a way to lose a game, they really need to be ashamed of themselves!!
And i am sorry i don't agree about that we better concentrate on the league, our pride and clubs prestige were at stake and what's the point of qualifying to
European competition if we always seems to not really care about it and give up most of the time.
I am really sad after yesterday's match, this is not the ajax way......

[Tom_]

And i am sorry i don't agree about that we better concentrate on the league, our pride and clubs prestige were at stake and what's the point of qualifying to
European competition if we always seems to not really care about it and give up most of the time.

Agree 100% on this point. The idea that professional athletes with world class training facilities and staff somehow can't play two games of football in a week is totally ridiculous to me, so I don't buy the argument that it costs us points in the league.

However you can tell from the lineup that de Boer wasn't expecting us to go through, and the fact is our chances were practically zero no matter who he had put out there, so I can understand him giving some fringe players the minutes.

We got a very tough team in the draw, who could've been in the CL, and they showed us that we're not European class. Nothing too unusual about that.

[Philippe]

No one really cares about this second class UEFA competition (what matters - apart from being Dutch champions - is qualifying for the CL, and then getting through the group phase). Even less after the terrible home game. Even less with the possibly crucial feyenord game three days later.
This inferiority complex is preposetrous : we could draw twice with AC Milan, beat Barcelona...
Looking forward to real football on Sunday !

[Tom_]

Good banners, much better than that brainless one with the Sheik last year. It's nothing to do with inferiority of the football club, the fact is Salzburg have a better squad than us. I think they're better than Milan, too.

[SPL]

After the 1st leg yesterday was always going to be a non event.After their 3rd goal ,with 15 mins to go I nearly turned off.I am a fan and stuck it out and at least Klaassen scored a goal.Winning the league,qualifying for the CL is No 1 for me .
Yes it would be nice to have a good run in this tournament but not at the expense of the league. We are now carrying injuries and no way can our current squad cope with a long run of Thursday nights and stay top of the league.

[Orange14]

After the 1st leg yesterday was always going to be a non event.After their 3rd goal ,with 15 mins to go I nearly turned off.I am a fan and stuck it out and at least Klaassen scored a goal.Winning the league,qualifying for the CL is No 1 for me .
Yes it would be nice to have a good run in this tournament but not at the expense of the league. We are now carrying injuries and no way can our current squad cope with a long run of Thursday nights and stay top of the league.

I pretty much agree with this and think that the whole concept of the EL needs, to be revamped. My only criticism is about how tactically inept Ajax were in each game. Questions about the coaching staff need to be answered. Also, I was troubled by the players attitudes.

[souras84]

The technical viewpoint of Frank De Boer was my problem. He knew what the problem was in the first game. He thought it was just a bad day in the office for us. So, he believed that he didn't need to change anything in our playing style for the second leg. How on earth did he reach that conclusion. The thing gets worse, when you read the players interview after the Arena game. They have the same delusion.
What I hated about barcelona in the Pepe+Tito era, was his stubbornness in sticking to his Plan A all the time. He got punished a few times and mostly, when it mattered (Real, Chelsea, Inter, Bayern).
Teams that like keeping possesion, and I don't even want to compare us with barcelona, need a plan B sometimes. Heck, we don't even have a playmaker type of midfielder to do the unexpected or get past 2-3 players (messi type). We are doomed against RB type of play.
Damn it, as if Red Bull dominance in Formula 1 wasn't enough!!!

[rjf1]

...It's nothing to do with inferiority of the football club, the fact is Salzburg have a better squad than us...

So, you have to ask yourself, how come Ajax, the "Amsterdam giants" (as the pundits like to call us), with its vaunted academy, and history of scintillating football, have a squad that is inferior (by an order of magnitude, it seems), to "little" Salzburg? Could it have anything to do with training up superior players solely in order to enhance their market price so that we can then sell them off to the highest bidder?

And it seems like the other Dutch teams have started taking that page out of the Ajax strategy book, as well -- which is why the Eredivisie as a whole has gotten so mediocre while Eredivisie emigrants are starring for major clubs all over Europe.

[Philippe]

I don’t think red bulls have a better side than us. It’s just circumstances : their struggle for their national title is virtually over, so they can entirely focus on this Europa League thing. We on the contrary are fighting to secure one more title : AZ last Sunday, feyenord this week-end.
They’re better than expected, but certainly not than Ajax.
Remember we had good games in the CL, against sides like AC Milan, Barcelona, or Celtic.
Cheer up, lads !

[SPL]

Just a point about our 2 CD's. Denswil was aweful last night having played fairly regularly and well in the first half of the season. Apart from the cup game v Fword he has only played 2 or 3 Jong Ajax games since then up until last night.
He should be playing eredivisie football every week and has now gone backwards imo because of the lack of playing time at a top level. If he were to play just 1 more minute for our 1st team he wont be able to play any more Jong games so unless there are injuries to Veltman and Moisander he is now stuck with sitting on our bench and playing next to no more football for the rest of the season. If Moisander stays next season then surely Denswil has to go out on loan to improve.

V d Hoorn is a decent talent and played regularly for Utrecht last season.Due to the development of Veltman he has played mainly in Jong Ajax and again this level is too low for him.We are stuck with 2 decent reserve CD's who cannot improve without regular 1st team football and risk going backwards .

I thus excuse these 2 last night but the midfield I cannot make excuses. de Jong as aMF is not worth his place in the team and Poulsen is too slow. Klaassen has gone backwards a bit recently and now looks just a better version of de Jong although less invisible.

Up front de Sa did try and got forward a bit the others were as non existant as the midfield although Siggy did get a header in , think that was the only time he touched the ball ( just checking he really did play 90 mins !!!)

Losing is bad but in the 2 games the MF was missing and the attack non existant.

[Orange14]

I don’t think red bulls have a better side than us. It’s just circumstances : their struggle for their national title is virtually over, so they can entirely focus on this Europa League thing.

I really cannot agree with you on this. They are quicker at every position and have much better ball skills (passing and dribbling). Look how they created triangles all over the offensive end of the pitch. As I noted in my match notes, they play the type of football that Marco Bielsa (he managed Chile in the 2010 WC and did wonders with them; too bad he cannot get along with anyone from senior management to players otherwise he would be better known than Guardiola) pioneered with four up front pressing all over the offensive half when the opponent has the ball. Our players were too slow to react and tactically let down by the manager who had not one idea of how to break down a team like this one. You need to be bold and push the fullbacks forward to create secondary passing lanes. Once you break the four man front line pressure it's possible to create numbers in the midfield with one or two extra players so that the defense is pressured in deciding who to cover. Unfortunately, we do not have the midfielders to carry this approach out.

Personally I think Red Bull is a fine club with a manager who has really got some players to carry out his strategic approach. I think they should have no problems with FC Basel in the next round.

[Dubbel]

I don’t think red bulls have a better side than us. It’s just circumstances : their struggle for their national title is virtually over, so they can entirely focus on this Europa League thing. We on the contrary are fighting to secure one more title : AZ last Sunday, feyenord this week-end.
They’re better than expected, but certainly not than Ajax.
Remember we had good games in the CL, against sides like AC Milan, Barcelona, or Celtic.
Cheer up, lads !

OK, maybe I am a sore loser. But Red Bull and Salzburg are linked to doping use. Could it be true? They were sure able to pile on a lot of pressure. Of course, innocent until proven guilty. Which is real convenient when there are substances -xenon gas- that cannot currently be traced.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMAAX2Cd3ww

[pizza 5]

Just back from the trip to Salzburg, we got what we deserved..nothing. They are just a better team than us, the desire from each of there players was just better and more than we could offer. As they did in the first game they closed us down very quickly and our usual tippy tapping around at the back could never get started. They had a game plan and players who were fully committed and aggressive and we just had no answer or a plan B.
What a great opportunity for van der horn and Denswil to show what they could do as a pair at the back and neither of them look up to the job. VDH looks like there is at least three mistakes in him every time I see him and Denswil seems to want to dribble the ball out from the back and take stupid risks for no good reason. If you are a centre half the first thought should be safety first.
Salzburg could easily of had six or seven goals last night but they actually played better in the first game at the Arena.

Bojan?.....What is the point of him and what is he for?
Poulson...Hes getting on a bit, but he always tries hard and is happy to put a foot in. Good man.
De-Jong...Bloody hell. He now looks as shit as his brother.
V.Rhine...Whats the matter mate? be confident make the tackle and get some crosses in.
Klassen....Pretend that you are playing Barcelona for every game and you will be a world beater.
Anderson....You need to put about 40 kg....you are to skinny and light...don't go out when its windy.
De-sa...Did ok showed some good touches.

Very very disappointing and we need to start to make some kind of impression in Europe. Never mind its over now lets move on and get the points on Sunday.

[ajaxcolombia]

Orange: it's not Marco, it's Marcelo bielsa.

[Orange14]

Orange: it's not Marco, it's Marcelo bielsa.

Correct, thanks