Champions League: Ajax's X-ray

Ajax meets Benfica again in the Champions League. This time, the match is at Estádio da Luz, at 8 pm on Wednesday, for matchday 4 of Group E. Ahead of the kick-off, the Official Site shows you what the Dutch have done in the last few matches.

After the game of the Champions League matchday 3 against Benfica, Ajax played three matches – two for the championship and one for the Dutch Cup – and won all of them. Scored eight goals and did not concede any. In fact, Ajax's defensive capacity has been praised. The men under Erik ten Hag have not conceded goals in the last six matches (the last time was against Bayern).

In second in the Dutch league with 28 points, five points behind the leader PSV, Ajax has racked up nine triumphs, one draw and one loss in 11 rounds. Varying between the 4x2x3x1 and 4x1x4x1 against Willem II, the coach of the Dutch fielded the following starting XI: Onana, Mazraoui, De Ligt, Daley Blind, Tagliafico, Frenkie de Jong, Schone, Ziyech, Neres, Tadic e Dolberg. Ajax won by 2-0, with goals from Dolberg (11’) and Frenkie de Jong (22’).

On October 31, there was a match for the Dutch Cup. In the 2nd round, Ajax hosted and beat Go Ahead Eagles by 3-0. 

After the triumph over Benfica (1-0), Ajax returned to the domestic competitions against Feyenoord. Ajax fielded the following starting XI: Onana, Mazraoui, De Ligt, Daley Blind, Tagliafico, Frenkie de Jong, Schone, Van de Beek, Ziyech, Tadic e Dolberg. 3-0 was the final score.

Stats that speak for themselves

In the last three matches, the stats reveal a lot about what to expect from the emblem from Amsterdam. They always made more than 20 shots, with 40% of those shots being on target, according to the statistical data of the platform Wyscout.

Another aspect that is an indicator of Ajax’s game identity is ball possession. In the three matches carried out after the match against Benfica, the team had around 60% ball possession. The Dutch carried out an average of 682 passes.

Top scorers

Top assist providers

Text: Marco Rebelo

Pics: Facebook Ajax