More questions, more problems: 2-2 against Groningen
2 (1) - 2 (1)
Eredivisie
Amsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam
Sunday, 02 September, 2007
The month of September is only two days old and the
Eredivisie only three matchdays underway, but crisis and
general mayhem are already looming at the Amsterdam ArenA,
where Ajax (against FC Groningen) lacked confidence, work
ethic, creativity, will-power, physical strength and a handful
of other things, including quality. The Amsterdammers were
visibly afraid and hardly deserved the single point
that the final score of 2-2 gave them. After the match,
riot police had to defend the main entrance of the ArenA, where
outraged supporters demanded a conversation with the
Ajax board. A delegation of five supporters
was actually invited by chairman John Jaakke and
financial director Jeroen Slop.
The start of the league was so promising, but the atmosphere
at the ArenA has (once again) turned
grim.
An unfortunate début: Albert Luque. [Photo:
Ajax.nl]
The UEFA transfer window closed on Saturday 01 September at
0:00 hours, so this is it: Ajax will have to do it with the
players they now have, at least until
January. It's not a very comfortable thought. "We
lack a bit of creativity in midfield," said head-coach Henk ten
Cate. Which is true, but the most remarkable thing remains
the fact that he and technical director Martin van Geel
have never really worried about Ajax's defense this summer.
That line (not the 'Sneijder-less' midfield or
the 'Babel-less' attack) appears to be the by
far weakest of the Ajax team.
Against Groningen, Ajax's two fullbacks were
actually midfielders (Gabri and Emanuelson). On the right,
fullback #1 is injured (Ogararu) and fullback #2 not good
enough for Ajax (Colin, who was left out of the starting
eleven). For the left side Ajax don't really have a
fullback at all. Urby Emanuelson is used to playing there, but
he's having a terrible form-crisis and seems to have lost all
of his confidence. The heart of defense? Thomas Vermaelen has
his good games, but definitely his stinkers, too. He still
isn't a top drawer man-marker a top side
can rely on. Jaap Stam? Ajax's leader in every
thinkable way, but he will not play 34 matches.
Moreover (and this is a worrying development) he starts to
make mistakes. The way Groningen striker Marcus Berg beat him
in the air for the visitors' second goal... that was a
first.
"Our defense is solid as rock," Ten Cate stated
only recently. The truth is that Ajax's have let in
one or two goals in every game so far, and that Ten
Cate has very limited options in case of injuries or
suspensions. Ajax miss Wesley Sneijder, that is undeniable, but
it seems like they're missing last season's Jaap Stam and a guy
like Zdenek Grygera even more.
The first half hour of the game was a yawn-fest of the worst
kind. Groningen must have sensed that there was absolutely
no reason to be afraid of this Ajax lot, but
they patiently leaned back and were not in a rush,
knowing that they played several good games at the ArenA in
recent years, but always left Amsterdam empty-handed. The
hosts were pathetic from the outset. Slow. Tepid. Nervous.
Disorganized. Sloppy. Stand-offish. Ten Cate wanted Klaas-Jan
Huntelaar to play as a lone striker, with Kennedy
Bakirçioglü (right), Luis Suárez (centre)
and newcomer Albert Luque (left) playing directly
behind him, making for something of a
4-2-3-1 formation. In the first 30 minutes, however,
it was very hard to determine what Ajax's plan was.
The very first noteworthy moment of the game was Luis
Suárez's stunning opening goal in the 33rd minute. Gabri
won the ball and passed it to the Uruguayan, who fired from the
right, without hesitation, from the corner of the penalty area,
an estimated 19 yards out. His diagonal screamer beat
goalkeeper Van Loo and slammed into the far side netting: 1-0
(33'). The contrast between Suárez's beautiful strike
and Ajax's play was almost embarrassing.
It was typical for the state Ajax are in that Groningen
equalized almost immediately, after a brief offensive. Maarten
Stekelenburg saved well on a Martijn Meerdink shot, then
punched a header out of the upper ninety in fabulous style, but
had no chance when Fledderus crossed the ball back into
the goalmouth and Marcus Berg slammed his forehead
against it: 1-1 (36'). For the record: the Swedish
striker was the most expensive player Groningen ever
purchased, with the money that Ajax paid them for Luis
Suárez.
Both teams had converted their very first chance, but
Groningen were easily the best
team in the boring first half. The visitors had
a plan and seemed to know what they were doing, which
was more than Ajax could say.
Jan Vertonghen replaced Hedwiges Maduro at half-time. [Photo:
Ajax.nl]
You could feel that it was going wrong. In the 56th
minute Marcus Berg had the chance to give Groningen the
lead, as he had a free passage to Maarten
Stekelenburg from the right flank. The angle was tight, but
Stekelenburg misjudged Berg's low attempt, which almost
trickled into the empty goal after Stekelenburg had failed
to collect it. Four minutes later Groningen did score:
Berg headed Paul Matthijs' corner kick
behind Stekelenburg and it was remarkable how easily Jaap
Stam lost his aerial duel with the Swedish 'target man'.
Groningen deserved the lead, that was a sure thing.
When Klaas-Jan Huntelaar had wasted the perfect chance to
level the score (unmarked header opportunity, inches wide,
66') an Ajax defeat seemed inevitable, if only because
Ajax's desperate offensive was so brainless. Almost
everybody stormed forward: Jaap Stam became a striker, Ismael
Urzaiz was brought on... it seemed pathetic, but it
did work somehow, although it had absolutely
nothing to do with the football Ajax wish to play.
In the 83rd minute Urzaiz won an aerial duel, Jaap Stam
flicked the ball on and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, suddenly on a
free passage, calmly lifted the ball over Van Loo: 2-2 (83'),
Ajax were back and smelled blood, as the ArenA finally came to
life.
Believe it or not, but Ajax should actually have won the
fixture after their equalizer out of nowhere. The team's
two unlikely 'battering rams' almost pulled it off in the 89th
minute: Ismael Urzaiz won another aerial duel in the box and
perfectly nodded it to Jaap Stam, providing the
Ajax skipper with a once in a lifetime
opportunity to score a last-minute winner as a striker,
face-to-face with the goalkeeper. Stam's shot was hard,
but not very well aimed. Van Loo saved with his legs - and
Groningen could celebrate a
well-deserved point.
So, what about your Ajax début then, Mr Albert Luque?
"Well, I enjoyed the stadium and the atmosphere, but I didn't
play well. My fitness still needs to impove."
How polite of him... The truth is that the crowd at the
ArenA was as tepid as Ajax itself. Luque can't read Dutch,
so he will not have understood the banners on
display: "Henk: thanks for two fantastic seasons" and,
an eyewink to the fact that season ticket holders will be
allowed in for free against Dinamo Zagreb in the first round of
the UEFA Cup fans, "If we get a free game for
every crap performance, we won't need to pay for a
match ticket until 2014".
And of course, there were the inevitable questions from
the press. Martin van Geel: "It is a shame that everything
has turned upside down in one week's time: no Champions
League, a tough one in the UEFA Cup and a bad performance
today. But let me tell you one thing: there are no doubts about
our head-coach. We will carry on, and we will do it together.
In good and in bad times. Period." (Menno Pot)
GOALS
- 33' 1-0 Luis Suárez
- 36' 1-1 Marcus Berg
- 60' 1-2 Marcus Berg
- 83' 2-2 Klaas-Jan Huntelaar
Referee: Blom
Yellow
cards: Stam (Ajax), Matthijs,
Meerdink (FC Groningen)
Attendance: 47,445
Ajax line-up: Stekelenburg; Gabri, Stam,
Vermaelen, Emanuelson; Maduro (46. Vertonghen), Suárez,
Heitinga; Kennedy (46. Rommedahl), Huntelaar, Luque (71.
Urzaiz).
FC Groningen line-up: Van Loo; Silva,
Sankoh, Kruiswijk, Metaj; Meerdink, Matthijs, Lindgren (82.
Svejdik), Fledderus (86. Nijland); Lovre, Berg.
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