Ajax vs Juventus Cancel Each Other out in Amsterdam as They Set for Second Leg Battle in Turin
It was the final part of this week’s champions league quarter-final first leg action, as the young and vibrant Ajax side battled it out against Juventus in Amsterdam, a game that ended in both teams canceling each other out.
Ajax have gotten much attention once again this season due to their very young squad and their attacking and high energy style of football that saw them eliminate the defending champions in a dramatic fashion and take the number one spot in the Eredivisie. A lot of eyes balls are on them in this competition based on their great performances, which was again shown in their 1-1 draw against Juventus few hours ago. For them, it isn’t the greatest result, but at the same time, it isn’t the worst result in the world as they still have a chance to turn things around in the returning leg in Turin.
Juventus had a great comeback against Atletico Madrid to reach this stage of the competition and will be aiming to seal this tie against Ajax at home. For them, they have put themselves in a very good position with an away goal which means that they take the tie back home and hoping to avoid defeat or a draw greater than 2. This competition is their major target this season, hence why the signed Ronaldo who has and is still on fire in this competition, to help them secure their most coveted trophy for many years. They have a very good chance this season if they finally make it through to the semifinals.
Brief Post-Match Analyses
Like always this season in this competition, it was a fantastic champions league night atmosphere at Amsterdam Arena, a fixture where attack meet defense, young meet old.
Ajax lineup in a 4-2-3-1 formation, while Juventus setup up in a 4-3-3 formation. The game began and Ajax started in a very lively manner and were on the front foot for most part of the first half. Juventus had their moments also and got their goal just before halftime through their most dangerous attacking weapon. Ajax got their deserved equalizer very early in the second half to ensure that they have something to hold on to going into the second leg in Turin.
Ronaldo opened the scoring in the 45th minute to continue his outstanding form in this competition, heading in from a perfect cross to give Juventus the all-important away goal.
Neres got the crucial equalizer for Ajax in the 46th, making a fantastic run down the left hand side to curl in the ball into the far right beyond the goalkeeper who had no chance of saving that. What a fantastic goal it was.
Match Stats
According to the final stats of the game, Ajax were the better team in terms of overall performance. Ajax had a total of 19 shots, 6 of them were on target, only one found the back of the net. juventus, on the other hand, had a total of 7 shots, only 1 on target which was the goal scored.
Ajax had 61% of the ball possession, 607 passes, and 85% pass accuracy, while Juventus had the remaining percentage of the ball possession, with 381 passes and a 76% pass accuracy.
Ajax had more fouls committed in the game, with a total of 15 fouls, 4 of which were shown a yellow card and no cards were shown for both teams. Juventus, on the other hand, committed 10 fouls and had just 1 yellow cards.
Ajax were ruled offside 4 times in the game while Juventus had none. 4 corner kicks was played by Ajax and Juventus had 1 less.
It was a very good game for both teams who still have so much to play for in the second leg. The tie is still very much close and both teams have what it takes to make it to the semifinals.