PAOK Saloniki - Ajax CL Qualifier

[Ayman]

Instead of predicting the scoreline, maybe we should predict which player will blow it for us, I remember Kuffour blew it for Ajax against a team from Prague, before that, Vermaelen blew it for Ajax against FC Copenhagen. So the candidates are as followed. Dolberg (for missing sitters), El Ghazi (for trying to tackle the entire team and going for glory instead of a simple pass), Viergever or Dijks(with a flimsy back pass to Cillessen, caught by a PAOK player who scores), and finally, Cillessen (out of position, allowing the opposition to score).

[Orange14]

That's a very defeatist attitude. Ajax will win the match!

[Ayman]

That's a very defeatist attitude. Ajax will win the match!

By a score draw of at least 2-2?

[Cruijff]

Instead of predicting the scoreline, maybe we should predict which player will blow it for us

Can I also bet with you on who will score the winning goal for us?

Cassierra or Dolberg or Klaassen?

[Tom_]

Ha. Since AeG7 was such a disaster in the first leg and cost us several opportunities, I will guess that he scores the winning goal and becomes an instant fan favourite... But we will know the truth ;)

[Orange14]

Ha. Since AeG7 was such a disaster in the first leg and cost us several opportunities, I will guess that he scores the winning goal and becomes an instant fan favourite... But we will know the truth ;)

and he does it with a quadruple stepover a al CR7!!!

[Cruijff]

Ha. Since AeG7 was such a disaster in the first leg and cost us several opportunities, I will guess that he scores the winning goal and becomes an instant fan favourite... But we will know the truth ;)

and he does it with a quadruple stepover a al CR7!!!

CR7? I've heard that term a couple of times.
Don't care to follow all sorts of football from clubs that live with great debts anymore, so perhaps you can tell me a thing I was wondering for quite some time.

Who is that needy guy that wants to stand next to El Ghazi?

[Orange14]

I don't know but I wish he had the level of talent of guy he's standing next to!!! Weird that they have become some sort of friends, or at least el Ghazi says they are.

[Cruijff]

Well... what means 'being friends' in the football world? Team mates that say their band was unbreakable and that they were the closest two persons in history of this planet for 8 years in a row completely lose all contact because one of them moved to another league in a different country and changed his phone number.

C. Ronaldo is El Ghazi's big example in football.

Apparently one of his friends, actor Mimoun Ouled Radi who mostly appears in movies about 'Dutch-Morroccan' had the connections to arrange this with Real Madrid.




At Real Madrid they perhaps thought. We've bought Ajacieden like Huntelaar, Sneijder and Van der Vaart in the past, just be nice to some young guys from there if at some moment we might again want to buy a talent for that club he or she could might prefer Madrid over Barcelona or England.

[Ayman]

http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague ... 64511.html The list of upsets of the champions league qualifers, it includes, Inter Milan, Lyon and Seville. We are in good company right? WRONG! Ajax are the only team in that list that were upset TWICE!

[Cruijff]

http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague ... 64511.html The list of upsets of the champions league qualifers, it includes, Inter Milan, Lyon and Seville. We are in good company right? WRONG! Ajax are the only team in that list that were upset TWICE!

These are random screw ups of some teams with a semi big name. There have been bigger humiliation in football than those ones.

That Thomas Vermaelen own goal was so unnecessary.

[Orange14]

@Cruijff - are you going to Greece for the match?

[Cruijff]

@Cruijff - are you going to Greece for the match?

I am at Schiphol Airport now, but for some reason most of the flights with a Southern European destination have about a three hour delay.

So only if SaddlerIan (or SPL, or you) will join me.

[Ayman]

Just wondered if the Ajax players practiced penalties. Ajax don't have a good record in penalties, several years ago against Steua Bucharest and the final against Juventus in 1996, both lost. I don't recall Ajax winning a penalty shoot out, ever in history. One could argue they have hardly any.

[Cruijff]

Just wondered if the Ajax players practiced penalties. Ajax don't have a good record in penalties, several years ago against Steua Bucharest and the final against Juventus in 1996, both lost. I don't recall Ajax winning a penalty shoot out, ever in history.

World Cup 1995 in Tokyo against Brazilian side Gremio.

Patrick Kluivert missed but Van der Sar stopped one and with not hitting the goal the Brazilians missed another one.

[Ayman]

Just wondered if the Ajax players practiced penalties. Ajax don't have a good record in penalties, several years ago against Steua Bucharest and the final against Juventus in 1996, both lost. I don't recall Ajax winning a penalty shoot out, ever in history.

World Cup 1995 in Tokyo against Brazilian side Gremio.

Patrick Kluivert missed but Van der Sar stopped one and with not hitting the goal the Brazilians missed another one.

Thanks Cruijff, I forgot about that one. But if this game came down to penalties, I just feel most of the team is too young to keep cool heads in such a hostile atmosphere.

[SPL]

We won a cup final on penalties a few years ago .


PS

just checked 2006/7 v AZ 1-1 after ET,Huntelaar our goal.We then won 8-7 on pens.

[Cruijff]

Yes. At the end Edgar Davids scored the winning one.

Which pissed of Maarten Stekelenburg a bit, because the agreement was that he would take that one.

[Ayman]

If it comes down to penalities, I would pick Riedewald to miss the key penalty that hands PAOK victory. After he was the best player on the pitch during the game.

[Orange14]

IIRC the only penalty takers for Ajax last season were Milik and Gudelj, correct? Most clubs spend time practicing penalties in the advance of knockout competitions and it does require nerves of steel. I remember a Euro U-21 match between Netherlands and England back in 2007 (I think that was the year) when it went into the second round of penalties before the Dutch finally won.

[Amol]

Younes has an injured groin and both Muric and Cerny are staying back in Amsterdam. The only winger we're taking is the one who doesn't believe in crossing.

Squad going to Greece -
Jasper Cillessen
Kenny Tete
Joël Veltman
Jairo Riedewald
Davinson Sánchez
Riechedly Bazoer
Anwar El Ghazi
Daley Sinkgraven
Davy Klaassen
Heiko Westermann
Mateo Cassierra
Lasse Schöne
Andre Onana
Kasper Dolberg
Nick Viergever
Nemanja Gudelj
Donny van de Beek
Diederik Boer
Mitchell Dijks
Matthijs de Ligt
Richairo Zivkovic

[Ayman]

Younes has an injured groin and both Muric and Cerny are staying back in Amsterdam. The only winger we're taking is the one who doesn't believe in crossing.

Squad going to Greece -
Jasper Cillessen
Kenny Tete
Joël Veltman
Jairo Riedewald
Davinson Sánchez
Riechedly Bazoer
Anwar El Ghazi
Daley Sinkgraven
Davy Klaassen
Heiko Westermann
Mateo Cassierra
Lasse Schöne
Andre Onana
Kasper Dolberg
Nick Viergever
Nemanja Gudelj
Donny van de Beek
Diederik Boer
Mitchell Dijks
Matthijs de Ligt
Richairo Zivkovic

Bad start already! Why is Cerny left behind? He could be used as a super sub! Zivkovic is a wantaway striker, who has no dog in this fight! Davinson Sanchez just won silverware in his previous club, he will likely be hungover! Matthijs de Ligt? Isn't he still only 16?

[Amol]

Yeah this breakdown doesn't make a lot of sense to me -

21 players total
7 defenders (Tete, Veltman, Sanchez, Westerman, Viergever, Dijks, De Ligt)
7 midfielders (Bazoer, Riedewald, Klaassen, Van de Beek, Gudelj, Sinkgraven & Schone)
3 forwards (Dolberg, Cassierra, Zivkovic)
3 keepers (Cillessen, Onana, Boer)
1 winger(El Ghazi)

Surely we could've kept 1 keeper at home and taken Cerny or Muric

[Ayman]

I suspect, Cassierra will start on the left, lets hope we see the same starting line up as last time, bar Viergever. I like to call him GoalGiver #VierGeverIsGoalGiver One for Twitter!

[Orange14]

Sanchez is just traveling with the squad; he is not registered to play in the match. Muric is having some issues with not playing and I don't know why Cerny was left behind.