The Future is Now! Ajax 2021-22 Season

Ajax are trying to find a buyer for Neres but I've not seen any news regarding interest. He was capped by the Brazilian NT a couple of years ago but does not seem to be the same player he was during the CL run. The whole reason Berghuis transferred over was that Neres would depart, now we may end up with three right wingers.

 

Lyon have inquired about Neres and a transfer fee of €25 was mentioned. I would be astounded and pleased if this goes through. Still no word on Onana who can return to club practice in mid-September. Ekklenkamp is off to a new adventure in Berlin, moving to Hertha for €3M. I always liked him as a player, a real hard worker.

 

A very good offensive display and the scoreline could have easily been worse. That being said, the clean sheet was flattering as Ajax were caught out on several occasions but Vitesse attackers made very poor decisions. Haller had multiple opportunities and should have netted at least one goal. Other than that, there is not much to pick at regarding the passing and play making as Ajax had over 70% of possession. Alvarez was my MOTM for good play both offensively and defensively.

Player Ratings:

Steckelenburg (6) - other than one very nice save, he was fortunate in just watching about a half dozen wasted chances from Vitesse
Blind (7) - very good passing and showed a bit more speed today playing FB
Martinez (6.5) - very good in the offensive half but caught up field on two occasions which cannot happen against better teams
Timber (6) - lost his marker on a free kick and lucky not to have been punished, good on the ball
Mazraoui (7) - the back heel to Antony was sublime; Overmars, get the contract extension done!!
Alvarez (7.5) - had one or two poor passes but his game was excellent other than that, I thought his shot would bring down the crossbar, it was that hard and he stayed alert to get a goal from VAR
Gravenberch (7) - excellent on the ball and was alert enough to get the goal after Alvarez rattled the crossbar
Klaassen (6.5) - saw hardly any of the ball for the first hour but then pops up to get a nice goal to finish the scoring
Tadic (7) - excellent on the ball and had a couple of chances for a goal but shot high
Haller (6) - worked very hard to get open but could not find the net; I think the goals will come
Antony (7) - good to see him back in the lineup today
Rensch (5) - 2nd half sub and did not see much of the ball
Tagliafico (5.5) - had some good runs in the 2nd half; I wonder if he leaves this transfer window
Neres (NR) - on late
Berghuis (NR) - on late but did see some of the ball as a MF
Schuurs (NR) - on late and Ajax went to three in the back

International Break coming up. Ajax then travel to Zwolle to play PEC and open up the CL campaign away to Sporting

 

Offside on Alvarez was negated as the ball came off Bazoer.

 

At the end of the day, Ajax are left with the roster they started with. I suspect EtH will move Berghuis into the MF and he may replace Klaassen who is looking slower this season; plus he has never been good on the ball whereas the ex-Feyenoord man is. If that happens Neres becomes first choice sub on the wing. Tadic needs rest this season. Overmars should tell Onana that if he does not extend his contract, he does not train with the club, full stop. Ajax went to bat for Onana last year to help get the ban shortened and Onana should be grateful for that. Onana totally misread what his market value is. Whether the doping ban had an impact is unclear.

As @wynaldaisagod noted above, Covid has totally disrupted the transfer market and most teams are looking a loans with an option to buy while Ajax prefer to sell direct. Maybe this becomes the new normal, we will need to wait and see.

 

I sure don't know what to make of this: https://www.ajaxshowtime.com/bijzak...kozen-in-fantasy-team-van-de-champions-league Let's hope he rewards the supporters' faith.

 

Shock and Awe Time!!!! I hope this third shirt strikes terror into all the Ajax opponents. They should wear it in both Rotterdam and Eindhoven and victory will be assured!!!!!

 

I thought about that but the sun was wrong. The three little birds look nice on the back of the collar but it's only a heat pressed image rather than embroidered so I don't know how long it will last. Even so, this has to be one of the greatest 3rd shirts of all time!!

 

I bought it directly from the Ajax store and I think it was €90 maybe. I figure since I don't go to games this serves as an in kind contribution to the club's finances. I think they sold out of the first batch and were going to have Adidas make a second batch. Apparently a lot of Jamaicans were ordering the shirt!

 

It's going to be up to Overmars and Onana. According to Overmars he is returning this weekend and will train with Jong Ajax. I think the only way he comes back to the club is by extending his contract for at least another year. He's only 25 years old. I don't know how much the drug ban complicated things for him but I think he vastly over estimated his own worth in the transfer market. Too many clubs have gotten burned by paying huge fees for GKs who didn't pan out.

I agree the two keepers Ajax have right now are sub-optimal. Gorter who is #3 got injured yesterday while training with Jone Oranje and returned to Amsterdam for treatment. He is highly rated but I don't know the extent of the injury. Other than that there is Raatsie who took Gorter's place and Setford who is a U-21 English keeper (one parent is Dutch I think).

 

Ajax did register Onana for the Champions League but he would only be able to play the final two group stage matches because of the suspension.

 

Ajax have ordered more Bob Marley shirts from Adidas!!! You can place orders at the Ajax store but delivery will be delayed until stock arrives.

Because of the WC qualifier between Argentina and Bolivia, Tagliafico and Martinez will not get back to Amsterdam until this Saturday and will not make it in time for the PEC Zwolle match. Some Spanish league teams have similar problems and matches between affected teams have been cancelled and will be rescheduled.