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Match Report: Over-cautious Ajax 'forgets' to win at Rosenborg

Beforehand, Ajax would surely have settled for 0-0 at Trondheim's Lerkendal Stadium, the feared fortress of Norwegian champions Rosenborg BK, where European giants such as Juventus, Real Madrid and Deportivo La Coruna have all stumbled in recent years. After ninety minutes of miserably poor football, however, the gray 0-0 draw was a rather frustrating result. Ronald Koeman's satisfaction was incomprehensible, and showed that the Ajax coach had not taken the time yet to study the table in group D and make some simple calculations.

The 'Norwegian storm' the Amsterdammers feared never seriously rose in Trondheim, where the usually pugnacious hosts remained remarkably tame throughout the match. Ajax started cautiously, but soon found out they were technically and tactically superior to the hosts. Ajax kicked off in a 4-4-2 formation: wingers Van der Meyde and Sikora were left out, as Wamberto played as a 'number ten', behind the striker couple, Mido and Zlatan.

Wamberto in particular was a pest for the Norwegian defenders, who soon lost their grip and saw Ajax create a few excellent chances. The first one was for Wamberto, who wonderfully slipped past a few defenders, creating a perfect shooting opportunity for himself. His shot, however, was poorly aimed and easy prey for goalkeeper Arason. Ajax' best chance by far was missed by Mido, and the rebound scuffed by Zlatan, a few minutes later. Mido came face-to-face with goalkeeper Arason, but fired straight into the goalkeeper's body, after which Zlatan failed to hit the rebounding ball hard enough.

Minutes later, the Swede rushed across the Rosenborg midfield after a smart Galásek thru-pass, releasing an almost perfect, low shot from over 30 yards, which went out of Arason's reach, but also inches wide of the post. Rosenborg got to take several of their much-feared free kicks and corners, but they were never a serious threat to Joey Didulica. In fact, 'RBK' seemed powerless, which was underscored by two remarkable substitutions by coach Eggen, who surprisingly replaced two of his most dangerous strikers (Brattbakk and Frode Johnsen) well before the half-time whistle.

A promising start for Ajax. It soon became clear that there really was no need for Ajax to settle for the draw in Trondheim. However, apparently on Koeman's orders, the team failed to impose its will on the Norwegians. By fits and starts, it was almost as if Ajax did not dare to take control and go for the full three points, a strange, over-cautious, and sometimes almost cowardly attitude, for which the team almost payed a high price in the second half.

In the end, Ajax' wavering attitude got so annoying, the team hardly deserved to win anymore. The extremely dull second half must have been a torment to the objective spectator. The Norwegians displayed no tactical of technical imagination whatsoever and did not even give Ajax a hard time by trying to physically overpower their smaller and lighter opponents. The fact that Rosenborg BK dominated the second half had nothing to do with the quality of RBK, but everything to do with Ajax' mysteriously cautious play.

Ajax seemed to require some boldness and flair to win the game, but Ronald Koeman decided to bring Aron Winter instead. Also, the coach replaced the team's best striker, Zlatan, while allowing the weakest one, Mido, to struggle on alongside the utterly hopeless Andy van der Meyde.

Meanwhile, Richard Witschge was allowed to bungle on until the 79th minute. One of the players who might have brought some sassiness, Maxwell, remained on the bench until there was hardly enough time left for him to show anything special.

Ajax leaned back, allowing Rosenborg to make it look like they grabbed Ajax firmly by the throat. RBK even created a few chances, but a Karadas header went inches over Joey Didulica's goal. The best chance was for one of the early RBK substitutions, George. He showed up in front of Didulica for an open scoring chance but then completely missed the ball, which trickled wide. Also, there were a few shots from midfielder Skammelsrud, but Didulica never got into serious trouble.

Towards the end of the game, the mysteriously irresolute Ajacieden practically deserved the defeat. And it almost happened when Jelle Van Damme tackled Enerly inside the penalty box, prompting the home crowd to scream for a penalty. It looked like a foul indeed; referee Benes would have had no reason to be embarrassed if he had given the penalty. However, he was right in not giving it. In slow motion, on TV, it became clear that the Rosenborg forward went to the grass before Van Damme's boot made contact.

Two points lost against a team which should have brushed aside by half-time, no question about it. Koeman's satsifaction after the game was, therefore, flabbergasting. It is a mystery how the Ajax coach can be satisfied with one single point, especially after inspecting the table in group D. After Internazionale's home defeat against Olympique Lyon (1-2), both Ajax and the Italians have four points, sharing the second slot. Both Ajax and Inter still have to play the away game in Lyon and a home game against Rosenborg before facing each other in Amsterdam. The chance that both Ajax and Inter will lose in Lyon but beat Rosenborg at home is small indeed.

Conclusion: not only will the Ajax vs Inter game almost certainly be an 'all or nothing' game for both sides, there is also a fair chance that both teams will have seven points going into 'Matchday 6'. In that case, Ajax will have to beat Inter in order to advance.

Indeed, some simple calculations are enough to reveal that Ajax did not win a precious point in Trondheim, but in fact lost two precious points. Ajax' has a fair chance to advance, but if the Amsterdammers fall one or two points short in the end, they will have to realize that those points were lost on Wednesday, 02 October, in Norway. (MP)

Referee: Benes (Czech Republic)
Yellow cards: Chivu, Bergdølmo (Ajax), Brattbakk, Strand (Rosenborg BK)
Attendance: 20,948

Ajax line-up: Didulica; Trabelsi, Chivu, Bergdølmo, Van Damme; Galásek, Van Halst (69. Winter), Wamberto, Witschge (79. Maxwell); Zlatan (69. Van der Meyde), Mido.

Rosenborg BK line-up: Arason; Strand, Basma, Hoftun, Saarinen; Olsen, Skammelsrud, Berg; Karadas, Frode Johnsen (35. Enerly), Brattbakk (40. George).

Group D result: Internazionale FC - Olympique Lyonnais 1-2

Related Links:

• Discussion: European Games
• Profile: Rosenborg
• Ajax.nl: Match Report (in Dutch)