Champions League: Ajax up against Bayern, Juve, Tel Aviv
26 August: The draw for the group stage of the
Champions League has become a complicated affair over the
years, with 'red' and 'blue' groups, clubs from the
same country that may not be in the same group or
on the same (blue or red) side of the schedule in order to make
sure that they won't play their home games on the same night.
Therefore, let's just look at the outcome for Ajax. Group C it
is. Opponents: Bayern Munich, Juventus and Maccabi Tel Aviv.
What a tough, but beautiful draw! Group C is a group of
national 'record champions'. The key question: can Ajax do it?
Rafaël van der Vaart: "Of course we can. If we didn't
believe so, we wouldn't even have to play those
games."
During the draw - that took place at the Grimaldi Forum
in Monte Carlo, Monaco, this afternoon - Ajax was seeded in
'pot 3'. As Lars-Christer Olsson, chief executive of the
UEFA, picked 'AFC Ajax' out of the bowl and assigned the
Amsterdam outfit to group C, pots 1 and 2 had already been
emptied. Ajax joined Bayern Munich and Juventus, two of
Europe's supreme football powerhouses. Bayern, Juve and Ajax...
wow, those clubs share no less than ten European
Champions Cups between them - and each of them also won the
competition once since the introduction of the Champions
League format! The relatively modest fourth team to be added to
the group, whichever side it would turn out to be, was
going to be the undisputed outsider. The dark horse. A few
minutes later the three giants in world football knew their
third opponent: Maccabi Tel Aviv, débutants in the
Champions League.
FIXTURES
- Wed 15 Sep : Ajax - Juventus
- Tue 28 Sep : FC Bayern München - Ajax
- Tue 19 Oct : Ajax - Maccabi Tel Aviv
- Wed 03 Nov : Maccabi Tel Aviv - Ajax
- Tue 23 Nov : Juventus - Ajax
- Wed 08 Dec : Ajax - FC Bayern München
Kick-off time for all games is 20:45 CET. It is as
yet unknown where the Maccabi Tel Aviv vs Ajax fixture will be
played. Last season the UEFA did not allow any UEFA games
to be played in Tel Aviv, Israel, due to unsafe political
situation. Maccabi played European 'home' games in Cyprus, but
also in the Dutch city of Rotterdam in recent seasons. A venue
for this season's Champions League fixtures has not been
announced yet.
REACTIONS
Ronald Koeman on Ajax.nl:
"A very tough group. Bayern and Juventus are clubs with a great
history, just like Ajax. In theory, Maccabi Tel Aviv
is the only favourable pairing for us. But time
will tell. Bayern have good strikers, such as Roy Makaay.
Juventus, to me, is the strongest team in the group. We start
with a home game against them, so we'll immediately find out
where we stand in the group. We'll meet them when they've only
just played their first league game. Of course we know some of
their players, and their coach, Fabio Capello. Whether nine
points will be enough to advance from this group is highly
uncertain. If the #4 grabs very few points, nine point may well
turn out to be insufficient."
Ronald Koeman in Het Parool: "I
don't know much about Maccabi Tel Aviv, but I think they must
be the weakest side. In that case we will have to battle with
Bayern for the second slot in the group. Bayern is a top club,
of course, but they did not make much of an impression in
recent years, domestically or internationally."
John Heitinga: "We watched the draw with
the team, in the players' home at the ArenA. That's fun. When
they started doing pot 3 we knew that Ajax could pop up any
time. That was exciting. We're up against three teams I've
never played, so I guess I can learn a lot from this. When you
say Bayern Munich I think of Roy Makaay. I think that one will
be a good game and Ajax always did well against them in the
past. This group appeals to your imagination, for sure. It's
all or nothing."
Rafaël van der Vaart: "We were in pot
3, so we knew we'd get two very tough opponents. And
there we have them. It's fun that we're up against a
German side. That's been a while. A Holland versus Germany
confrontation is always nice. And it's nice to play Roy Makaay,
of course. I look forward to that."
Wesley Sneijder: "We watched the draw and I
thought: look at those clubs! Barcelona and AC Milan. Valencia
and Inter. Real Madrid and AS Roma. Bayern and Juventus. If you
see those names you don't even talk about a good or a bad draw
anymore (...) It will be great to play Bayern. Firstly, it's a
beautiful club. Secondly, I think we'll have more difficulty
against Spanish or Italian than against German or English
top sides."
Sources: Ajax.nl and Het Parool
THE OPPONENTS
FC BAYERN MÜNCHEN
History & Honours
Die FC Bayern is for Germany what Ajax is for The
Netherlands: not only the by far biggest and most succesful
football club in the country, but also the international figure
head of the country's football culture. A football legend
that, to the average foreigner, is almost a synonym for German
football as a whole, thanks to greats such as 'Kaiser
Franz' Beckenbauer, Gerd 'Der Bomber'
Müller, goalkeeper Sepp Maier, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge,
Lothar Matthäus and Dieter Hoeness. Bayern,
like Ajax, are the most popular as well as the most hated.
The most stylish as well as the most arrogant. Ajax
have Johan Cruyff, Bayern have Franz Beckenbauer: the
symbol of a football nation. A man everyone in the
country will listen to whenever he has something to say.
More similarities? Both clubs were founded in 1900
(Bayern on February 27, Ajax on April 18). They have strikingly
similar lists of honours - and not only because Bayern, like
Ajax, is the undisputed Rekordmeister ('record
champion') of its country. Ajax won the European Champions Cup
three times in a row in the 'Golden 1970s' (1971, 1972, 1973),
but immediately thereafter Bayern München did the same
thing (1974, 1975, 1976). More recently both clubs won
the 'big one' once again, by winning the new
Champions League format (Ajax in 1995, Bayern in 2001). Both
teams also won the European Cup Winners Cup once and the
UEFA Cup once.
Bayern München Today
Bayern qualified for this year's Champions League
directly, but not by winning the German championship. The
2003-2004 Bundesliga was won by Werder Bremen. Bayern had to
settle for the second slot. This season is supposed to be
the year of Bayern's revenge. They want to win the German
championship and (it's been a few years) make an
impact in Europe. Some of the stars in today's Bayern
squad, coached by Felix Magath, are Dutch striker Roy Makaay
and fellow forward Roque Santa Cruz. Bayern's midfield is more
'German': Michael Ballack, Mehmet Scholl,
Sebastian Deisler, Torsten Frings, Bastian Schweinsteiger
and Jens Jeremies are only a few of the available
midfielders. The most noteworthy man in the back is,
without a doubt, goalkeeper Oliver Kahn. The veteran has a
love-hate relationship with the German tabloids these days and
recently made headlines by saying that he's fed up with Germany
and wants to leave his country forever.
Stadium
On Tuesday 28 September Ajax will visit Munich, the #1
metropole of the southern region of Bavaria, to play 'FCB' in
the magnificent Olympiastadion, which was built for the
Olympics of 1972 and opened on 26 May of that year. It is the
stadium where the Dutch national team suffered its most painful
defeat ever (the World Cup final of 1974), but also booked its
most glorious triumph ever (the final of Euro
1988). Current capacity is 63,000.
Ajax vs Bayern History
Ajax and Bayern München have met three times in UEFA
competition. The first time was in March 1973, in the quarter
final of the European Champions Cup. A 2-1 win in
Munich was not enough for Bayern to wipe
out a 4-0 thumping in Amsterdam two weeks earlier
(goals for Ajax: Gerrie Mühren, Johan Cruyff and two by
Arie Haan). Ajax moved on to win the 'big one' that year, for
the third time in a row.
Times had changed in October 1980, as the two sides met
again in the second round of the European Champions Cup. This
time the roles were reversed: Ajax won the second leg by
2-1 in Amsterdam, but it was not enough to make up
for the 5-1 spanking they'd received in Munich,
where both Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and Dieter Hoeness had
netted twice.
The third and last time Ajax and Bayern clashed in European
competition was in April 1995. Two cautious teams did not score
in Munich's Olympiastadion (0-0) after which Ajax played one of
its best games of football ever in a roaring Olympic Stadium in
Amsterdam: 5-2 was the final score. Litmanen (twice), Finidi
George, Ronald de Boer and Marc Overmars scored for Ajax,
Witeczek and Scholl for Bayern.
Remarkably, one of the most historic games between Ajax and
Bayern was not a UEFA fixture, but one of the
six friendlies the two powerhouses played against each
other over the years. Ajax invited the Germans as the
opponent in a tribute game organized for Johan
Cruyff on 07 November 1978. Cruyff had left Ajax for FC
Barcelona four years earlier, but wore the Ajax jersey for the
occasion. It was supposed to be a pleasant
evening, but Bayern München did not co-operate. In
front of a stunned crowd the Germans destroyed Ajax without
mercy: 0-8. Rummenigge and Gerd Müller netted three goals
each. Paul Breitner added another two.
Only two players played for both Bayern Munich and Ajax over
the years: Danish midfielder Søren Lerby and Jan
Wouters.
For more information and a detailed club history visit the
English version of the
official Bayern München website.
JUVENTUS
History & Honours
AC Milan may be Italy's most succesful side in UEFA
competition, in Italy itself Juventus is the undisputed #1.
They have the by far largest fanbase throughout the
country and won no less than 27 scudetti (Italian
championships) in the trophy cabinet. Founded in 1897
the club from the industrial city of Turin (home of Fiat) won
the Coppa Italia nine times. Just like Ajax and Bayern
Munich, Juventus belong to the elite of clubs to have won
all three European Cups at least once. The 'big one' was
grabbed in 1985 and 1996 (beating Ajax on penalties in the
final), the European Cup Winners Cup went to Turin in
1984 and the UEFA Cup in 1977, 1990 and 1993.
Every great club has had its sad days. On 29 May
1985 Juventus won their first ever European Champions
Cup in club history, but it will be remembered as one of the
darkest days in the history of football. It was the
day of the Heizel tragedy in Brussels. 39 supporters
died and 350 got injured as riots between Liverpool and
Juventus supporters caused chaos on the stands.
Juventus. Juve. The 'Old Lady'. The vertical black
and white stripes of the Juventus' jersey are as legendary as
the countless greats to have worn it. From legendary goalkeeper
Dino Zoff to goalscoring phenomenon Giampiero Boniperti. From
Paolo Rossi to 'Toto' Schillacci. From Roberto Baggio to
Pierluigi Del Piero. From Zbiginiew Boniek to Pavel Nedved.
From Michel Platini to Zinedine Zidane.
Juventus Today
The 'Old Lady' won the scudetto in 2003, but
had a rather disappointing season last year. They could not
keep up with AC Milan and AS Roma last season and finished
'only' third, so that the pride of Turin had to gain access to
this season's Champions League by playing qualifiers.
Swedish outfit Djurgårdens IF embarrassed Juve
in Turin (2-2), but was rather easily brushed aside in the
return leg in Stockholm (1-4), where French superstar David
Trezeguet netted twice.
Trezeguet is one of Juventus' superstars today, but of
course not the only one. Who ever thought that Ajax would
be playing against Zlatan Ibrahimovic... on 15
September and 23 November? And what about goalkeeper
Gianluigi Buffon, French star defender Liliam Thuram, veteran
defenders Ferrara and Cannavaro, midfielders Alessio
Tacchinardi and Pavel Nedved, or Trezeguet's companions
upfront, Alessandro Del Piero and (since 31 August) Zlatan
Ibrahimovic? They are coached by Fabio Capello, who will
bump into Ajax for the third time, each of those
times with a different club. With AC Milan (1994-1995) and AS
Roma (2002-2003) he had to bow his head...
Stadium
Ajax have good memories of Turin's impressive Delle Alpi
stadium (built for the World Cup of 1990). Goals by Wim Jonk
and Stefan Pettersson in the first leg of the UEFA Cup final in
1992 would eventually be sufficient for the
Amsterdammers to clinch the trophy. The opponent wasn't
Juventus, but their city rivals: Torino, who
share Delle Alpi with Juventus. The official capacity of
the stadium is 71,012, although in practice the ground is
usually declared sold out when some 65,000 tickets are
sold. This explains why the bottom rows of
seats usually remain empty during Juventus home games.
Ajax vs Juventus History
Ajax and Juventus bumped into each other no less than five
times in European competition and the status of both clubs is
best underscored by the fact that two of
those confrontations were Champions Cup finals. The first
time was on 30 May 1973 at the Crvene Zvezde ('Red Star')
Stadium in Belgrade, Yugoslavija. It was Ajax's third European
Cup final in a row and the Amsterdammers pocketed 'number
three' almost nonchalantly: an early Johnny Rep goal
was enough. 1-0.
Juventus got their revenge just over a year later in
the 'round of sixteen' of the UEFA Cup in November/December
1974. They black and white won the home leg in Turin on a
single goal by Damiani. Ajax won the home leg by 2-1 two weeks
later, but Damiani's single goal (this time from the
penalty spot) was the vital 'away goal' Juventus
required.
In March 1978 the two sides clashed in the quarter final of
the European Champions Cup - and once again it was a tight
affair. Both games ended in 1-1, after which
Juventus proved considerably better at taking penalties:
3-0.
Ajax once again failed from the spot in the Champions
League final on 22 May 1996, after yet another tight Ajax
vs Juventus fixture with - once again - 1-1 as the final
score (goals by Litmanen and Ravanelli). Sonny Silooy and Edgar
Davids missed their spotkick and Ajax had to bow its head. The
'Great Ajax' of Louis van Gaal seemed to collapse, but to
everyone's surprise the Amsterdammers once again performed
extremely well in the Champions League the season
thereafter. They made it to the semi-finals, in which
the opponent was... yes: Juventus.
The semi-final confrontations of April 1997 were the only
ones in which one of the two
sides proved considerably stronger. Ajax were
outplayed in the Amsterdam ArenA, although the final score was
'only' 1-2 (goals: Amoruso and Vieri for Juventus, Litmanen for
Ajax). In Turin, the glorious 'Van Gaal era' came to
a dramatic end: 4-1 to Juventus. Lombardo, Vieri, Amoruso and
Zidane netted for the hosts, Mario Melchiot for Ajax. Two
of the players from Ajax's 'Class of 1995' swapped the red
and white of Ajax for the black and white of Juventus
in the years thereafter: Edgar Davids and Edwin van der Sar.
And today, of course, they have Zlatan...
For more information and a detailed club history visit the
English version of the official Juventus
website. (MP)
MACCABI TEL AVIV
History & Honours
According to the saga the Maccabees fought for the
freedom and autonomy of Zion over a thousand years ago.
Their struggle is remembered each year during
the traditional Hanukah celebrations. It explains why several
Israeli football clubs are named Maccabi. Maccabi Tel Aviv is
the most succesful of the lot. Founded in 1927 the club
clinched 18 national championships and 21 domestic cups, a
record to which Maccabi's city rivals Hapoel don't even come
close. Almost naturally, Maccabi Tel Aviv were the first
Israeli outfit to enter UEFA competition in 1992-1993.
Maccabi Tel Aviv developed more Israeli internationals than
any other club. The Israel team that became immortal by
qualifying for the World Cup of 1970 included Maccabi players
such as Giora Spiegel, Rahahim Talvi and Zvi Rosen. Another
Maccabi great is Nir Klinger, who played for the club for eight
years and had 83 appearances for Israel, mostly as the team
captain. Klinger is today Maccabi Tel Aviv's head-coach.
Maccabi Tel Aviv Today
Maccabi Tel Aviv was the main supplier of players for the
Israeli national team in the past - and still is today.
Nir Klinger's squad includes internationals such as Baruch
Degu, Liran Strauber and Eli Biton. Foreigners are still
relatively rare in the Israeli league compared to most other
European leagues, but Maccabi have more international
stars than most Israeli sides, such as Mauricio
Govanini from Brazil, Ishmael Addo and Jhon Penstil from Ghana
and Andalla Ibrahim from Nigeria.
25 August 2004 was a milestone in the history of the club
and Israeli football in general, as Maccabi Tel Aviv
became the first Israeli side to pull into the Champions
League. The qualifiers against Greece's PAOK Saloniki will be
remembered because of the ineligible player fielded by Greeks
and the subsequent UEFA penalty of an
administrative 0-3 result that paved the way to the
Champions League for Maccabi. To Maccabi's credit:
they would have qualified anyway, after
a 1-2 upset in Greece and another 1-0 triumph in Tel
Aviv, where Tamir Cohen became a hero by firing his club into
the Champions League.
Stadium
Due to the unsafe situation in the Tel Aviv area of
Israel Maccabi Tel Aviv played some of their recent
UEFA qualifiers and UEFA Cup fixtures in unlikely
places such as Cyprus and Sparta Rotterdam's home
ground. The situation has now been deemed safe enough
by the UEFA and the club can play first ever Champions
League home games at their actual home ground: Bloomfield
Stadium in Tel Aviv, originally built in 1928, where up
to 16,500 spectators can be accomodated.
Ajax vs Maccabi Tel Aviv History
Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv never played each other.
Not in UEFA competition, not in a friendly. The only
two times Ajax played in the city of Tel Aviv and faced a
few Maccabi players were on 13 December 1967 (friendly against
the Israeli national team; 1-6 to Ajax) and 06 June
1977 (friendly against a an Israeli
All-Star Team, result 1-1). Otherwise? There were two
friendlies in Amsterdam against Maccabi's local rivals Hapoel
Tel Aviv (0-0 in 1951, 6-2 in 1961), but never against
Maccabi.
The only time Ajax faced Israeli opposition in official
UEFA competiton was in the fall of 1999: Ajax booked a
convincing 0-3 win at Hapoel Haifa, but was embarrassed by
the modest Israelis in the second leg at the ArenA. The
0-1 final score heralded a dreadful season. The most memorable
thing about the fixture was the historic sense of
brotherhood between the two sets of fans. Both carried the Star
of David with pride and Hapoel got an ovation from the home
fans after the game, to which the Israeli players responded by
walking a lap of honour and throwing their jerseys into the
crowd.
The only Dutch club ever to have played Maccabi Tel Aviv in
an official game is Roda JC, who met the Israelis in the
third round of the UEFA Cup in the fall of 2001. The Limburg
outfit booked a convincing 4-1 win in Kerkrade, so that a 2-1
stumble in the second leg did not hurt.
The official Maccabi Tel Aviv website has a modest
English version. (MP)
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