Sustain the Excellence: Ajax, 2019-20

I had some meetings today and just finished watching the replay of the Getafe match. This was by far the worst Ajax offensive performance that I have ever seen in all my years (and I go back a long ways). The first shot on goal came in the 86th minute by Huntelaar. It looked as if Ajax had never scouted Getafe and had no clue how to break them down. Almost every pass was over weighted and the MF was totally absent in terms of ball control and passing. Getafe pressure was excellent and Varela spent the match kicking long balls that had no receiver. Down 2-0, it's doubtful that Ajax will dig themselves out of this hole given the lack of offensive punch. ETH has to take a long look in the mirror as he really did not have his team ready to play.

Player Ratings:

Varela (5) - didn't look to distribute the ball out very quickly at all
Tagliafico (5) - I didn't think he deserved a YC but that call stands and he sits the return match out
Blind (5.5) - did try to make things happen
Alvarez (4) - storybook is now closed, he is just not good enough for Ajax
Dest (5) - no chances to push forward tonight
Martinez (5) - worked hard on defense in MF but that was it
van de Beek (5) - no factor at all
Ziyech (5) - Chelsea must be wondering if he is really worth €40M
Babel (4) - reverted back to poor-touch player tonight and was quite poor
Tarore (4.5) - probably not too much to fault him for as he hardly ever saw the ball
Tadic (5) - no magic this season at all
Schuurs (5) - has to start from now on
Huntelaar (5) - a scuffed shot was all

 

Alvarez is worse.

 

I'm not going to dwell on the disaster last night other than to post this link: https://www.ajaxshowtime.com/article/ho ... de-malaise I was wondering why ETH had the two CBs playing so close to the keeper on kick outs, this explains it and why it didn't work.

 

Ajax have finalized the signing of FC Sao Paolo winger Antony for €15.75M. This is the same club that David Neres played for. Clearly Overmars is being proactive given the number of players who will be leaving next summer.

 

Another disappointing loss against Heracles for the third year running. Ajax are never comfortable on plastic surfaces and they couldn't adjust to passing on a slow pitch. I was going to be content with a 0-0 draw and then Blind made an uncharacteristic blunder and Dessers hit the back of the net to become the top scorer in the Eredivisie. Without the key starters, Ajax will face a difficult time in every match going forward and another slip up or two are entirely possible. Feyenoord are on a roll and I can't see Ajax winning in Rotterdam right now. The magic of last season is gone and the team just looks too ordinary.

Player Ratings:

Onana (7.5) - no chance on the goal but three very good saves kept it from humiliation
Tagliafico (6) - decent enough match but could not deliver anything on offense
Blind (4.5) - a couple of very bad errors including totally missing his man on the match winner obscured a better than average match
Schuurs (6) - yes he had a couple of poor give aways but also made some crucial interventions
Dest (6.5) - one of the better players today
Martinez (5.5) - looked out of sorts and came off at the half
Gravenberch (4.5) - poor passing and some defensive lapses
van de Beek (6) - best scoring chance of the day with a rocket off the bottom of the crossbar
Babel (4) -exceedingly poor
Huntelaar (5.5) - worked hard but that was it
Tadic (5.5) - it's just not happening this year
Eiting (6) - He needs to be starting against Getafe as he pushes the offense forward
Danilo (5) - had a chance for a goal at the end of the match but not much else
Ekelenkamp (NR)

Getafe on Thursday and then AZ at home on Sunday. We'll know what this team is made of in seven days. Overcoming the two goal deficit to Getafe will be very difficult as this team really has trouble scoring.

 

Until Promes and Neres (I don't like the fact that he's still out and not training yet) come back this team cannot score goals against a decent defensive team. Tadic was special last year when he played in the middle but is just ordinary on the outside. Meanwhile Dolberg is a regular scorer for Nice, go figure.

 

Promes comes back into the selection for the EL match tomorrow but it's not clear whether he can start. Ziyech will miss the game as his calf injury is still at issue and ETH wants to take no chances given the AZ game on the weekend. Tagliafico is suspended.

 

Everything has gone downhill since the robbery at Stamford Bridge. Ajax were not good enough on the night, giving up a cheap goal early on and then needing 3 goals to win the tie. Ajax played hard but passes did not connect and quite frankly there is not enough creativity in the team that started this match. Greek CR didn't put up with any nonsense and called a good match.

Out of Europe and shaky in the league, Ajax will have a lot to play for in the league. AZ dropped their match today 2-0 and are also out now.

Player Ratings:

Goal Post (10) - three great saves to keep Ajax in the match
Onana (5.5) - all over the pitch trying to calm down players but caught out of position several times
Blind (5.5) - one bad mistake but did recover and got a head on an open goal shot to save one
Martinez (4.5) - poor defending on the goal and not much better as the game went on
Schuurs (5.5) - shade above average
Dest (6) - one of the better games
Eiting (6) - very nice free kick but didn't force the game much
Gravenberch (4.5) - unimpressive match
van de Beek (6)- ran hard all match long but couldn't get much done against a stifling defense
Babel (4.5) - not as many bad touches today but that's only faint praise
Tadic (5) - just not the same jubilation as last year
Danilo (5) - got a goal on a tap in and that was his total contribution
Promes (6) - good to seem him back in the line up, he has been missed
Huntelaar (NR) - on late and picked up a YC

AZ coming up Sunday and Ajax need both Promes and Ziyech on the pitch if they hope to get a result.

 

Martinez has not played LB at all for Ajax and did OK as a CB when Blind was out. Ajax needed a passer at LB and Blind plays there for the NT. I don't mind this decision by ETH. Ajax just committed two poor defensive plays over the two matches and was punished.

 

I think what this shows is how great Frenkie and de Ligt were. Those two and no significant injuries made last year special.