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Ajax have narrowly managed to beat out their domestic rivals PSV on Sunday afternoon at the Johan Cruijff ArenA. The Amsterdammers were the better side for much of the scrappy match, but a string of injuries made things increasingly difficult for Ajax as the game progressed. Quincy Promes’ opening goal remained the only goal of the day, however, and Ajax extended their stay at the top of the league. The visitors will be traveling home tonight still sitting at a disappointing fifth place. Ajax 1 – 0 PSV
Ajax – PSV is one of the biggest events of the Eredivisie season, every season. Yet this year the ‘Topper’ was a slightly devalued affair, considering that PSV is halfway through a campaign from hell and are closer to the middle than the top of the table. Still, millions will tune in to watch the two historically most successful football clubs of the Netherlands cross swords, and the ArenA was filled to the brim. Both sides spilled points last week and are arguably in bad shape, and the match reflected that.
Ajax did have a promising start to the match. They looked determined to quickly score an opening goal as to not keep up PSV’s hopes for too long. The visitors did not have an answer to Ajax’ speed and aggression and spent most of the opening stages in their own box trying to survive. Quincy Promes was as close as can be to the first goal of the evening when Carel Eiting put him one on one with the goalkeeper. Eiting started in midfield, replacing Siem de Jong, and he saw his assist vanish into thin air when Promes’ volley was magically saved. Sergiño Dest also tried his luck in the first ten minutes, but his shot from distance was just off-target.
Ajax failed to convert any of their early chances, but PSV failed to create any chances at all. Ajax would lose possession every now and then, and PSV would occasionally keep hold of the ball when that happened. Yet every time they ventured into the Ajax half, the PSV attackers seemed disorganized and wasteful. Ajax could comfortably go on the offensive without really having to worry about backlash. A great offensive followed, in which Ajax created the one chance after the other, but just lacked a sense of conviction and precision. PSV goalie Lars Unnerstal excelled in his role as shot-stopper, but his one slip-up allowed Ajax to open the scoring eventually.
But before the goal fell Ajax had been forced to substitute early. Joel Veltman’s match was finished after only half an hour of football. He won the ball for his team with a strong and convincing tackle but started to limp and hobble soon after, seemingly having strained a muscle. He was replaced with Perr Schuurs. Promes scored the 1-0 just a few minutes later. Unnerstal tragically mishit a clearance and handed the ball to Donny van de Beek, who went on to dribble deep into the box before being forced off the ball. That ball fell right in front of Quincy Promes, who finished calmly and had a new dance to show his supporters.
The first half wrapped up with a few more shots from distance coming from Ajax, one poor effort by PSV’s Bruma, and yet another injury for us to worry about. Quincy Promes tried to assist Ryan Babel with a cheeky back-heel pass, but he was inaccurate and pulled his hamstring in the process. He did not play in the second half: Lassina Traoré did. That second half was a whole lot less entertaining than the first had been. Ajax gradually lost their grip on the midfield and PSV suddenly presented themselves on both sides of the pitch, though they still barely created any danger.
After an hour of football, Babel was on the ground. All of Ajax’ substitutions were soon to be spent on injuries, since Babel quickly made it clear that he also could not continue. Mazraoui came on to replace him. PSV started to cheer up a bit and claimed increasingly more of the ball as the match approached the final whistle. Suddenly Ajax were the ones to dig in around their goal, in which they were successful. While PSV was struggling to find their equalizer, Ajax came close to doubling the lead. Sergiño Dest was taken down in the penalty box but was denied a penalty by both the referee and the VAR.
Neither side proved to have the tools to score in the second half, though the sloppiness on both sides made for a thrilling last ten minutes. No Amsterdammer or Eindhovenaar seemed to be able to retain possession of the ball for an extended period of time, nor did they create many chances worth mentioning. Lars Unnerstal did have an ultimate try at scoring when he crossed the field for a PSV corner. His header went wide, however, and Ajax came out on top. It is a result to be happy about and a performance to be critical about, but the real tragedy is the fact that Ajax is dealing with an injury epidemic.