Via Vojvodina, Panathinaikos and Jagielonia Bialystok, Francesco Farioli achieved his first goal in the service of Ajax by reaching the competition phase of the Europa League. On Thursday, Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s Besiktas will be the first opponent in the Johan Cruijff Arena. An opponent that Ajax could have a hard time with!
Ajax – Besiktas
Europa League
September 26, 2024, 9:00 PM
Johan Cruijff Arena, Amsterdam
WEDTIP
Troy Parrott & Ibrahim Sadiq score > 5.00
Under Van Bronkchorst, Besiktas is having an excellent start to the season. Eight official matches have been played Black Eagles – the Black Eagles – of which it won seven and drew one. In the Süper Lig, only Galatasaray has done better so far, but against that club of all clubs, Besiktas booked the most remarkable result of this young season. In the battle for the Turkish Super Cup, Besiktas humiliated its arch rivals with no less than 5-0. The big man in Van Bronckhorst’s team is Ciro Immobile. The Italian came over from Lazio for a song and has already scored eight times in the eight matches this season.
So much for the praise for the Turkish team. Because although the figures are excellent, there is also plenty to criticize. For example, Besiktas escaped losing points last weekend in the home match against Eyüpspor. Only deep into injury time did Immobile give his team the 2-1 victory from the penalty spot. The previous league match, away at Trabzonspor, ended in 1-1 and the 2-0 victory over Antalyaspor was also a difficult one. The decisive 2-0 only came in the final minute. And in the preliminary round of the Europa League, Besiktas easily dealt with FC Lugano (5-1) on home soil in the return match, but the first leg in Switzerland had ended in a 3-3 draw.
But with Immobile, the Portuguese internationals Rafa Silva and Joao Mario who came over from Benfica, Gabriel Paulista who came over from Atlético Madrid and the former Eredivisie players Jonas Svensson (AZ) and Milot Rashica (Vitesse), Van Bronckhorst has excellent players at his disposal, who could well make things difficult for Ajax. The Amsterdammers had a bad dress rehearsal for the match against the Turks. In the Adelaarshorst, Ajax struggled against Go Ahead Eagles, and could ultimately be happy with a 1-1 draw. The loss of points followed a hopeful 5-0 win over Fortuna Sittard, a few days earlier in their own Johan Cruijff Arena. The two matches are exemplary of the current state of the record champion, where much depends on the form of certain players on the day.
TOTO Prediction
This does not alter the fact that the Amsterdammers look a lot more stable than last season. Farioli has brought structure back to the team, and especially defensively things are a lot better in order than his predecessors. His challenges are therefore at the front of the team. With Brian Brobbey, Wout Weghorst and Chuba Akpom, Farioli has three strikers with different qualities, but on the wings the occupation is mediocre. If Mika Godts and Bertrand Traoré do not have their day, Ajax’s attacking game will be sluggish and there is no replacement available. But both players can also excel. Certainly in an atmospheric Johan Cruijff Arena, as is always the case with European matches. We therefore expect a victory for Ajax. Given the qualities of Besiktas a victory with a goal against. Will it be 2-1, 3-1 or 4-1?
WEDTIP
Correct score combination: Ajax wins 2-1, 3-1 or 4-1 > 4.50
Where can you watch Ajax – Besiktas on TV?
ZIGGO has the broadcasting rights for all European tournaments this season. The match between Ajax and Besiktas will be broadcast on ZIGGO Sport. You can watch the match on Thursday evening from 21:00 on channel 14 if you have a ZIGGO subscription, or via the ZIGGO Go app.
Please note: quoted odds are subject to change.
Photo: Pro Shots