02 Aug 2009: FC Groningen - Ajax

[Amol]

AY! Good on him Rommedahl! 2 - 0

2-0

[orange goblin]

great dennis I've always believed in you! one goal, one assist, one crossbar hitted, some goals missed as usual ;)

[Snyde]

Classy goal by Rommedahl...nice ball in by Suarez but really good run to get in the box and then finish it by Rommedahl

[Ajaxfanuk]

Groningens keeper got hurt during the goal hes coming off and the lanky wonder that is Brian Van Loo enters the fray

[Kowalczyk]

Shit defending from Groningen, says the radio dude...

I'm very pleased, I have to say. I expected problems, defensively. But they didn't create anything at all.

K.

[Ajaxfanuk]

I think its Groningen just being awful today but our defense has never looked troubled, I cant remember Steks having to make a save really.

[Snyde]

But if you look at the way the defense is organised it seems that it can get caught on the counter by a better side, Groningen have been quite poor.

Nice shot by Urby, forces a corner which results in nothing.

Aissati coming on for Sulejmani

[Ajaxfanuk]

Dennis, Oh Dennis you've played well today, he just ran his arse off to stop a ball going out for a goal kick, credit where credit is due, hes played well and should probably keep his place.

[ZoefdeHaas]

Good game overall. Though I think I prefer AIssati over Enoh.

one game, one win, 3 points. good start!

[Ajaxfanuk]

Game over a tidy victory, nothing too taxing Groningen were poor, our defense will have tougher days. I think in general we werent that amazing, De Zeeuw was quiet as was Suarez, Micky had some good moments as did Enoh, special mention goes to Rommedahl for proving me wrong. I think we need some harder games to really see how we will be comparing to the rest of the top half this season but I think the pieces are in place to enable us to do well, the 4-4-2 was naturally less positive in attack but was functional and we were solid.

Last season we lost the opening game
Last season we lost at the Euroborg (If i remember correctly, it was 1 - 0 Groningen and Vertonghen was sent off)

Today we won the first game of the season
Today we won at the Euroborg

All in all cant ask for much more, you can only beat what is in front of you

[Over Pasanens Head]

Tough trip to start the season. My prediction - a 2-0 win for the home team

Told you so !!!!!!!!

[ZoefdeHaas]

Tough trip to start the season. My prediction - a 2-0 win for the home team

Told you so !!!!!!!!

Technically the home team was Groningen, since it was at the Euroborg

[Snyde]

That's it. FT 2-0 to Ajax. First 3 points. Decent game, Groningen were poor and if Ajax took their chances a bit better it could've been more. All in all quite a few positives and one can hope that they will only improve.

It always surprises me how Ajax players are so much better on the ball than their opponents. IMO Ajax should play at a higher tempo as they can handle a faster paced game better than their opponents. Also the players are much better at short passing than long so Jol should try to compress the pitch more and have more support for the man in possession rather than moving wider to stretch the defense.

Their close control and passing in the final third is what made the difference for Ajax, so they should try to apply it to their whole game in general rather than just in the final third. Also the work rate of players isn't that high, Rommedahl really showed how much difference that extra effort can make and he deserves credit for it. They should try and incorporate that in every players game.

[Venezuelan Ajacied]

Game over a tidy victory, nothing too taxing Groningen were poor, our defense will have tougher days. I think in general we werent that amazing, De Zeeuw was quiet as was Suarez, Micky had some good moments as did Enoh, special mention goes to Rommedahl for proving me wrong. I think we need some harder games to really see how we will be comparing to the rest of the top half this season but I think the pieces are in place to enable us to do well, the 4-4-2 was naturally less positive in attack but was functional and we were solid.

Last season we lost the opening game
Last season we lost at the Euroborg (If i remember correctly, it was 1 - 0 Groningen and Vertonghen was sent off)

Today we won the first game of the season
Today we won at the Euroborg

All in all cant ask for much more, you can only beat what is in front of you

I got a feeling this is going to be the Ajax we are going to see, less spectacular but more efective, in the past years we have been a rollercoaster with some huge wins and some big loses, this time around it looks like we will be more consistent. It's going to be interesting to see how Jol plays the team at the Arena....I'm speculating here but maybe he will use 4-3-3 at home against weak oposition and revert to the 4-4-2 when visiting and european matches...kind of what Koeman did in his first year.

Great start to the season, optimism must be running high right now

[Venezuelan Ajacied]

Good game overall. Though I think I prefer AIssati over Enoh.

one game, one win, 3 points. good start!

Given our problems in the defense i dont think this would be wise, but like i have said, maybe at home games we will use a more atacking formation thus in a 4-4-2 we could use only 1 defensive midfielder and enable Aissati to play the shadow striker role.

[Amol]

PSV seems to be in trouble against VVV.

[gordonvandekamp]

Yeah Groningen were poor, their defense looked as bad as ours in the two Amsterdam Tournament games. They never really threatened on the attack.

I actually thought de Zeeuw did quite well, although in a way that won't show up in the stats. He adds some composure to the team, both in defense, and in building up the attack, that I don't remember seeing much of over the last few years. I like the idea of giving him the ball, rather than passing it back to the keeper to boot it up past midfield and lose it. I think that alone will help keep some goals out.

Rommedahl definitely isn't as speedy as he once was, but still made good decisions and was in good positions. I think it will be interesting, and maybe not in a good way, to see how these seemingly 'excess' players fit in during the length of the season.

The one thing I thought we looked poor on was the delivery from set pieces and corners. I'm not sure one was delivered to an Ajax player where they could do anything with it. Luckily that's something that can be improved on and I don't think it will be a problem all season.

Good result, hope we get better.

[saddlerian]

Well, just got back to my hotel here in Am'dam. Watched the 1st half in a pub...pleased we were 1-0 up, but not too enthused about the performance against a shit poor team! Went for a walk at Half time and didn't bother going back....that's how much it grabbed me!!!
Let's make sure that everything's put right for next week....the "grit" in the middle of the park wasn't there....maybe it's the 4-4-2?

Oh well, they can only get better, and 3 points is a good result!

Roll on next Saturday!!

[SPL]

Good start.At least we got 3 points . Was out today so did not see the game but I notice next week is Saturday evening so will look forward to seeing us then. Very early start to the season this year .

[bluedaddy19]

Business done. Good job. Next.

[ofey]

Good start to a new season. I hope it's really a sign of things to come.

Though the first one can be put down to abit of luck. 2nd one was well worked.
I think Ajax should look to first build up some confidence with a couple of wins. 4-4-2 or 4-3-3 or 3-2-3-2 will depend on how we start and how we can control. Flexibility would be good to have and the boys who've come through the system and been here long enough should be able to handle any system which makes our players so sought after.

If we play a solid 4-4-2, there'll always be something to fall back onto should anything happen and keep things tight away from home.

[Blind3]

First , 0:2 is one way to help get the taste of last years opening day debacle out of the mouths of Ajax Supporters. Thank you AJAX !! Second ,Gotta love those clean sheets. Third, At least for one week, the question of whether to hang on to Dennis Rommedahl or not is decided in the players favor.

CONGRATS! AJAX !!!

[Manneken Pis]

Personal opinion:

De Zeeuw was MOM .... nothing spectacular, just very present and keeping the machine ticking over ....he could be our Makalele.

Sujemani (sp?) looks slimmer and more motivated.

Crap opposition though, so we'll need to see in a real test.


B.T.W. Anybody see the P$V v. VVV highlights? That Honda looks useful!

[Over Pasanens Head]

Personal opinion:

De Zeeuw was MOM .... nothing spectacular, just very present and keeping the machine ticking over ....he could be our Makalele.

As long as he is the new Galasek I will be happy.

[Snyde]

Ajax 2-0 FC Groningen in the Media

Previews:
From Ajax.TV on Youtube
By Maarten Ernest
By fcgroningeneuroborg
By RTVNoord

Goals and Highlights:
Both Goals (bad quality)
Pre kick off (lineps etc.)+ Goals (7 mins, good quality)
1-0 Sulejmani
2-0 Rommedahl

Post match Interviews:
By Ajax.TV
By RTVNoord

Other:
Photo Video by afcajordi020
More fan videos at mcw300's channel and afcajordi020's channel

Match Reports:

Neither of the two sides were able to entertain the fans, but the Amsterdam side won’t be worried about that after bringing home the full three points. Serbian attacker Miralem Sulejmani scored the 1-0 minutes before the break after being set up by companion Dennis Rommedahl. The latter added his name to the score sheet in the second half after a perfect cross from Luis Suarez to decide the match. Groningen were simply unable to threaten Ajax and never came close to scoring.

Ajax didn’t have any problems with FC Groningen. In the past seasons, Groningen seemed to become Ajax’ angstgegner, but Jol’s men didn’t get in trouble at all: 0-2. Jol had positioned De Zeeuw and Enoh centrally in midfield and he was happy with what he saw: “Both De Zeeuw and Enoh bring body and strength to the team. We never got in trouble and I saw flashes of the Ajax I want to see. De Zeeuw said that he only wants to play better, so if today’s the benchmark I’m keen to see more. He was outstanding!”.

Ajax’s vulnerability in defense seemed to have evaporized due to the midfield changes. Aissati was kept on the bench - despite his impressive pre-season - and Dennis Rommedahl - last season borrowed out! - was the man of the match with a goal and an assist. Sulejmani scored the first goal.

Jol is still on the lookout for a central defender and a striker. “I was able to stopgap our defense by sacrificing Aissati, but I think we need a blocked and strong center back.”

Playmaker De Zeeuw pushed Ajax forward and controlled the game allowing Sulejmani, Suarez and Rommedahl many more chances. Stekelenburg started the season as Ajax’ first goalie.

Full match report

Martin Jol enjoyed a promising first competitive game in charge of Ajax as the Amsterdammers won their opening Eredivisie game of the season at FC Groningen 2-0.

The arrival of Jol, brought in from Hamburg over the summer, has prompted talk of a title challenge at Ajax - the club have not landed the Dutch domestic crown for five years - and the early signs were encouraging.

Miralem Sulejmani opened the scoring eight minutes before half-time and Dennis Rommedahl made sure of the points with 18 minutes to go.

Groningen, who finished a surprising sixth last season, threatened early on through a Goran Levre effort which flashed just wide before the visitors took control.