Relentless Ajax pressure completes thrilling comeback
3 (1) - 2
(2)
Holland Casino Eredivisie
Amsterdam ArenA,
Amsterdam
Saturday, 01 November, 2003
Ajax-AZ was a match between the number one and number two
teams of the league table - and it was a top match for
more reasons than just the standings. In a very exciting game,
AZ took the lead two times but had to bow its head in the last
minute when Ajax secured a 3-2 victory from a controversial
penalty. Of all players it was acknowledged
Adriaanse-protégé Galasek to pull the
trigger against his former head-coach (at Willem II
and Ajax). Right after the match, the Czech,
remarkably, apologized to Adriaanse: "I did it for Ajax".
Wesley Sneijder and Barry van
Galen tangle in pursuit of the ball. [Photo:
ANP]
AZ started furiously in the Amsterdam ArenA, in the
Blitzkrieg playing style they've become so well known
for this season. Two weeks ago they set a bizarre record by
scoring three goals in the first five minutes of a match,
at FC Utrecht. In the ArenA they were 0-1 up once
again after only five minutes. Wesley Sneijder lost the
ball to an AZ player in midfield, who passed it to an
unmarked Ali Elkhattabi. A desperation slide-tackle
by Zdenek Grygera came too late and the Moroccan
was able to pass the ball to Kenneth Perez who placed the ball
neatly behind Bogdan Lobont: 0-1.
Koeman criticized Sneijder after the match for being so
sloppy: "The last couple of matches Sneijder has been unable to
possess the ball in midfield - something he used to
be so good at." Ajax came back into the match, with once again
Zlatan Ibrahimovic showing Ajax the way. With a nice move he
turned around defender Jose Fortes Rodriguez and set himself
free to challenge former Ajax-goalie Henk Timmer. The Swede
tipped the ball past Timmer and into the
netting via the inside of the post: 1-1
(22').
But the Ajax crowd couldn't celebrate long. Only
two minutes later Kenneth Perez scored his second of the
evening. Former Ajax-fullback Tim de Cler received the ball
from Barry van Galen and dribbled easily around Zdenek Grygera
- who formed the center of the defense with Escudé - and
fed the ball beautifully to a free Perez. Bogdan Lobont did his
best to cover the near post, but the AZ striker's first-time
shot was perfectly placed back across the face of goal and into
the far-side netting.
In the second half, Ajax started better, revealing that AZ
had already wasted most of its energy. Ajax was dominant
and once again the young left-winger Nicolae Mitea (brought on
for Soetaers after the break) played an excellent match, making
things very difficult for the Alkmaar defense. Ajax went for
the equalizer and came very close on
several occasions: Wesley Sonck hit the post, for
starters, after which the ball bounced back into the grateful
hands of a 'frozen' Henk Timmer. Two minutes later,
Ibrahimovic got the ultimate scoring chance as he found himself
alone with the ball in front of Timmer, who was totally out of
position. To the surprise of everyone in the ArenA
Ibrahimovic managed to shoot the ball wide of the goal
from only a yard or two.
In a sense Ajax were lucky that it was still 1-2 at that
time. Minutes before AZ could have secured the victory by
extending its lead to 1-3: Barry Opdam's attempt was just saved
with the feet by Lobont. Nevertheless, Ajax was far the
better team in that period and it was therefore somewhat
surprising that Koeman made two substitutions: Sneijder went
out for Wamberto, and Litmanen replaced Heitinga. It took Ajax
almost ten minutes to recover from the changes and get their
dominance back.
Jari Litmanen entered the game
and provided a vital
spark to the Ajax attack. [Photo: Gerarg van
Hees/Ajax.nl]
Wamberto was the man to provide the decisive assist for
Ajax's second equalizer of the night. Nigel de Jong jumped
higher than his opponent and headed with conviction past
Timmer to level the score. The Ajax youngster, who hasn't
played much this season, is replacing the injured Hatem
Trabelsi in the starting eleven. After his goal Ajax
visibly believed in a victory.
That victory eventually came to stand from the penalty
spot. Wesley Sonck fell to the grass several times
inside the penalty box, drawing criticism from the AZ
defenders, who accused him of 'diving'. In the 89th minute,
as the ball bounced into the penalty box, AZ defender Jan
Kromkamp and Sonck both went for it. Sonck had the better line
on the ball but was not very close to it.
Kromkamp, meanwhile, swung at the ball and instead made
contact with Sonck's leg. The Belgian went
down once again - and this time the sharp whistle of
referee Temmink indicated that Sonck and Ajax were going
to get what they wanted.
AZ was furious and Tim de Cler received his second yellow
card for protesting. The former Ajax defender was
sent off for the second consecutive time he visited the
ArenA with AZ. De Cler was somewhat lucky that he
wasn't sent off in the first half. Just before
the half time break De Cler committed a rough foul,
but since he just had received a yellow card, Temmink might
have thought that two yellow cards in two minutes would have
been overly severe.
The penalty was questionable, to say the very
least. Based on the entire match and the chances
Ajax created especially in the second half, however, the
victory was not undeserved. In this month of important
matches Ajax once again rose to the occasion. After the victory
against Celta de Vigo and the draw in Eindhoven, Ajax will now
face its fourth highly challenging and important match
in only two weeks' time: the return game against
Celta, in Vigo, Spain. Ajax's lead in the
Eredivisie has been maintained by beating AZ. A
victory in Vigo would mean that the Amsterdammers
also maintain their lead in Group H of the
Champions League. If that happens things will
look very promising indeed for Ajax. (BV)
GOALS
- 05' 0-1 Kenneth Perez
- 21' 1-1 Zlatan Ibrahimovic
- 23' 2-1 Kenneth Perez
- 77' 2-2 Nigel de Jong
- 90' 3-2 Tomas
Galásek (penalty)
Referee: Temmink
Yellow cards: De Cler (AZ)
Red card: De Cler (AZ, double yellow,
90')
Attendance: 50,222
Ajax line-up: Lobont; De Jong, Grygera,
Escudé, Maxwell; Heitinga (68. Litmanen),
Galásek, Sneijder (68. Wamberto); Sonck, Ibrahimovic,
Soetaers (46. Mitea).
AZ line-up: Timmer; Kromkamp, Buskermolen,
Fortes Rodriques, De Cler; Opdam, Van Galen (65. Nelisse),
Lindenbergh; Perez (73. Reini), Elkhattabi (82. Meerdink),
Huysegems.
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