Haven't seen a line-up, but http://www.ajax.nl/home/ has a nice photo of JOB looking very pensive indeed. What can the question possibly be? "Kent iedereen om het even wat over dit skinny snel jong geitje "loopas dmb?" "Ja, ja. Ik heb hem ergens... gezien Het zal komen over me."
top story at www.soccer365.com says beasley looking foward to facing JOB in match tomorrow. the beas mentioning that hes heard job is healthy and will play. should be a fun game, hope they both play and do it well! forza inter
I don't know of any net feeds. Sorry about that. However, I have the game on live over here tonight (starting at 8:25 p.m. Melbourne time, 3:25 a.m. PT/6:25 a.m. ET). ESPN International's Sunday schedule (Pacific Rim) Can't wait. So do we know for sure if both DMB and JOB will be playing? I presume bluedaddy19 will be at the match, so I'd be more than happy to handle the PbP on this one.
JOB/Ajax news O'Brien nears comeback -- skysports.com Beasley/PSV news Match preview -- sportinglife.com (a good Mark van Bommel quote about DMB in this one) Also, in that sportinglife.com piece, it hints that Ajax coach Ronald Koeman could very well field the same eleven that beat Maccabi Tel Aviv in midweek. But as far as JOB goes, we'll see what happens.
So, which team will yank abroad fans be pulling for? Normally, I'd say AJAX all the way, and I'll still follow that if John actually plays, but they haven't put him in even though reports claim he seems fit and is doing well in practice. I'll have to then root for the team that actually puts a YA into the game. If they both get in, then I'm pulling for Beas to score a goal in a PSV loss. If John does get in, I have the salt to toss, the wood to knock, the incense and candles to offer prayers of health, and the voodoo hex to cast on anyone who might try to do him injury.
Beasley on the bench for PSV (Forfan preferred), and no sign of JOB for Ajax (but he's not in the starting lineup for Koeman's team). I've only got the lineups via TV on ESPN at the moment, they've only given the audience the first XI's for each team, and no benches, yet. As soon as I can find the lineups and the benches online anywhere, I'll post them. 40 PSV wins, 38 Ajax wins in this storied series, but Ajax have a ten-year drought in looking for a win in Eindhoven.
Lineups from Soccernet Beasley on the bench for PSV, no JOB for Ajax. PSV EINDHOVEN 1 Heurelho Gomes 5 Wilfred Bouma 19 Michael Lamey 8 Philip Cocu 25 John de Jong 3 Young-Pyo Lee 6 Mark van Bommel 14 Johann Vogel 17 Jefferson Farfan 7 Ji-Sung Park 9 Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink Bench 23 Edwin Zoetebier 22 Csaba Feher 16 Theo Lucius 11 DaMarcus Beasley 35 Gerald Sibon 15 Johan Vonlanthen AJAX AMSTERDAM Bogdan Lobont 1 Nigel de Jong 16 Johnny Heitinga 3 Scherer Andrade Maxwell 5 Hatem Trabelsi 2 Anthony Obodai 12 Wesley Sneijder 18 Rafael van der Vaart 10 Steven Pienaar 8 Mauro Rosales 7 Wesley Sonck 19 Bench Hans Vonk 31 Julien Escude 4 Zdenek Grygera 23 Stanley Aborah 30 Rasmus Lindgren 38 Daniel De Ridder 20 Nicolae Mitea 29
10th min. -- Forfan draws a couple of quick fouls, the latter of which has him taking a free kick 20 yards out, right in front, which ends up being deflected out for a corner that eventually comes to nothing. 12th min. -- Park fires wide on PSV's next attack. Steve Cangelosi, doing PbP on ESPN Int'l, observes that Forfan has been "very active" in PSV's attack so far.
15th min. -- Sonck shooting wide from long range at the end of Ajax's forst true free-flowing attack. Ajax basically playing a counter-attacking style away from home, in the opening quarter-hour.
25th min. -- Bouma goes high over the top on a free kick after van Bommel had been fouled. 28th min. -- Van Bommel has a shot saved after Cocu had done well to set him up. 34th min. -- Farfan draws another foul, this time on the wing from within 25 yards. PSV have had a vast majority of the attacking play so far.
40th min. -- PSV goal... Lee with the finishing shot, off Lobont in the Ajax goal, at the end of a five-man PSV move that included a Farfan back-heel that opened up the attack down the left. Ajax's defence gave Lee too much space and respect on their right-hand side, and Lee had the time to shoot. 1-0 PSV
Should also add that Lobont really mis-handled Lee's low shot, came off his hands with a bit of backspin. A clanger on his part, really.
Halftime: PSV 1-0 Ajax, at the Phillipstadion in Eindhoven, on the Lee goal. For the YA perspective, DMB was warming up on the touchline at the very end of the half after John de Jong went down late in the half and received some on-field treatment (others were warming up alongside Beasley, however). Farfan has been looking quite active and dangerous for PSV, and I can't see DMB replacing him based on current form in this match.
50th min. -- 2-0 to PSV, as John de Jong heads in at the far post from Trabelski's cross from the left after Farfan brought the ball back for Trabelski from the byline. Maxwell beaten by de Jong on the header, of which Janusz Michallik (the former USA international defender from the early '90s) remarked on the broadcast that "this is where Ajax misses John O'Brien, he can contend better in the air like that".
53rd min. -- Labont in pain as he lost a 50-50 airborne challenge against PSV's Park on the side of the area. Looks like a knee or an ankle injury. Koeman makes a goalkeeper sub, Vonk on for Labont.
Here comes Beasley!! 58th min. -- John de Jong off, DMB on. Looks like Farfan is going to have a bit more of a free role in the midfield, with DMB patrolling the left.
59th min. -- A couple of good chances for Ajax, Cocu blocks one van der Vaart shot on the left and another VDV shot hits the left-hand woodwork.
63rd min. -- DMB nearly picks off a lazy backpass played back to Vonk from Trabelski, but Vonk gets to it first. 64th min. -- Park tries to set up Beasley, but the pass is broken up. Beasley getting involved, immediately...
68th min. -- DMB gets into the box at the end of a series of quick touches by his PSV teammates, and sends Vonk into a sprawling save at the right-hand post.
Another GK sub, oddly enough, this time for PSV... Zoetbeier on for Gomes, who appears to have gone off in the 71st minute with a thigh injury.