Pro ShotsBerghuis celebrates the 1-0
NOS Voetbal•gisteren, 22:03
On a sultry Greek summer evening of about 30 degrees, Ajax achieved an important but difficult victory in the third preliminary round of the Europa League. In Athens, Panathinaikos was defeated 1-0.
The only goal of the match was fired into the corner by Steven Berghuis after half an hour, after which Ajax had to survive for an hour against the also not impressive Greeks. Ajax faltered at times, but held on, partly due to a good match by goalkeeper Remko Pasveer.
Winning in Athens does give Ajax an excellent starting position for the return match next Thursday (20:15), when Panathinaikos comes to Amsterdam. Should Ajax make it through this preliminary round, a play-off for a place in the main tournament of the Europa League awaits.
One change
Italian coach Francesco Farioli, who stood on the sidelines shouting loudly for almost the entire match, sent out almost exactly the same team for the third match in a row. After all, it had worked in the two-legged match against FK Vojvodina. The Italian only changed something in one place against the Greeks: Berghuis replaced the injured Dane Christian Rasmussen.
In the Olympic stadium in Athens, where Marco van Basten famously headed the Amsterdam team to victory in the European Cup II against Lokomotiv Leipzig at the first post in 1987, Ajax started well. The Greeks were pushed back and with three chances in the first minutes the Amsterdam team showed ambition. But it didn’t get much further.
A somewhat tame first half only ignited after half an hour when Ajax combined smoothly on the right via Berghuis, Devyne Rensch and Kian Fitz-Jim. Berghuis got the ball back after he had set up the attack himself, fired in with his left and cheered like the nonchalantly shooting Turkish Olympian Yusuf Dikeç. Hand pistol in the air, other hand in the pocket: 1-0.
Pro ShotsBerghuis imitates Turkish Olympic shooter Yusuf Dikeç
Ajax barely survived a Greek salvo of attacks immediately afterwards. Encouraged by the fanatical Greek fans, Panathinaikos got into the spirit and Ajax got more and more into trouble. Goalkeeper Pasveer, with more luck than wisdom, tipped a hard shot onto the crossbar and Ajax survived until half-time.
Ajax under pressure
The second half was no different. The physically strong Greeks kept increasing the pressure. It was a matter of time before the Greek chances came. Daniel Mancini scored, but was whistled back for offside, and Alexander Jeremejeff also got a one-on-one chance with Pasveer that could not be missed, but ended up just wide of the post.
At Ajax, the strength slowly drained away and here and there players went to the ground with cramps. It was still warm, at half past nine in the evening still 29 degrees.
Farioli was the only one who still had energy left until the end of the match. Until the seventh minute of injury time, when Panathinaikos’ strength had also disappeared, he kept shouting on the sidelines. Until the whistle blew and peace returned to Athens.
