07 FEB 2026; AZ - Ajax; Match Day 22

[Orange14]

3rd match against AZ this season and I hope this is not the disaster like the first two.

[Orange14]

AZ had a Beker match today against Twente and it went to 120 minutes before they won 2-1. Maybe they will be tired on Saturday.

[Jinne]

Game is on Sunday.

[Orange14]

Game is on Sunday.

They still will be tired on Saturday!!! Don't know where I got the Saturday date.

[SPL]

No new no 6 but with a MF with Reeger and Klaassen we have no chance .Klaassen is the weak link . If they start using Berghuis over Bounida I think I will give up .

[Tom_]

I assume we will lose this.

NEC play Heracles and have their catch up game against Utrecht this week. We could be 6 points behind 3rd place by the following weekend!

[SPL]

Lose this game and if NEC beat Utrecht in their game in hand we would be 7 points behind them.We may be playing Feyenoord for 3rd place. Expect a defeat in this game but who knows .Talk of Mokio at LB as Zinchenko has not trained for 10 days. So we are paying 1.5m plus 250k in salary for 12 games max. Its a joke .

[Tom_]

We still play NEC and Feyenoord (and they play each other) so it’s possible to get into 2nd. But I think 3rd is better for this team. Not interested in watching them get smashed in the CL group stage.

[SPL]

NEC play Utrecht on Weds and Utrecht are in poor form ,currently losing at home to Feyenoord. Need 3 points today.

[Tom_]

Sounds like Mijnans and Smit might be unavailable for AZ. Still not much hope if you ask me. I expect AZ to press hard in the first 30 mins and win the game before half time.

[SPL]

Wijndal for Mokio only change from starting line up last week. Klaassen and Regeer in MF utterly dreadful. Berghuis not fit after a brief appearance sitting on the bench last week. Zinchenko on the bench so hope he comes on

[Tom_]

Um, not sure Zinchenko can be very good if Wijndal is starting. He may not be fully fit but I would prefer a half eaten doughnut to Wijndal at LB.

[SPL]

Wijndal is rubbish, why on earth do they set off fireworks .Clearing now

[SPL]

A very moderate 1st half from both sides and no real chances.

[SPL]

Got out of jail thanks to F-Jim and a draw was a fair result. Only sub I would complain about was taking off Godts surely Reeger could have come off as Godts is our best winger.Edvardsen did nothing. Main weakness is still playing Klaassen our MF is not good enough with him and Reeger just sits in front of the CD so Steur is almost on his own although Bounida, who is a no 10 and not a winger had a poor game in my opinion.

The squad is not good enough as we all know and I dont see us getting 2nd place and even 3rd will be a struggle.

[Orange14]

Another Grim display of football from Ajax today. Too much mediocrity and the tie is rescued with a header from the least likely player on the pitch, Fitz-Jim. Zinchenko got some minutes and showed that unlike all other players on this team he can deliver some nice crosses. I assume he will slot into the starting lineup next week. With Klaassen in the game the team is just too slow in ball rotation and players are easily double teamed. Farioli had faith in Fitz-Jim but Grim doesn't fancy him. We'll have to see if NEC can sustain their pace and leave Ajax in fourth place on the season.

Player Ratings:

Jaros (5.5) - unconvincing and forced into much aimless kicking
Gaaei (5.5) - above average
Sutalo (5.5) - had a disastrous slip in the first half but otherwise OK
Baas (6.5) - on of the better players
Wijndal (6) - tried to force the play down the left side and was decent
Regeer (6) - decent but will always be criticized as not the solution
Steur (6) - had a rocket shot that was saved in the first half but looked like it was a bit too high
Klaassen (4.5) - WHY? Because he is Grim's favorite player
Bounida (4.5) - mediocre
Dolberg (5) - zero help from his teammates and saw lots of kicks from Jaros over and under hit
Godts (6) - tried to force things but did get one chance on goal that was a bit wide
Fitz-Jim (6) - on for Klaassen and got the goal that gave Ajax a point
Zinchenko (NR) - showed he can play for this team
Edvardssen (NR) - always works hard even when he is mediocre
Oscar (NR) - showing more and more that he is a waste of €s
Wegorst (NR) - kept the ball alive

With all the waste of money over the past three seasons, Ajax need to institute a new rule to not pay over €5M for any transfer. They may have to do that anyway because of financial problems with no CL money in the foreseeable future.

[SPL]

Agree ratings and certainly no more spending over 5m Itakura was a dreadful signing,no better than Sutalo who was not sold. Gloukh is a nothing player .Dolberg is ok but for 10m plus 3,5m salary pa think we could have got someone better.

[Tom_]

It was a terrible game, but an away draw at AZ is a really good result for this team. We have to beat Fortuna then hope we can sneak something out of the NEC or Feyenoord game.

[Amol]

Saw the first 25 minutes and then had to leave for my squash game. I took squash more seriously than the Ajax players and won.

[Tom_]

@Amol, I think I have willingly skipped more Ajax games this season than in the previous ten seasons combined. Watching this team feels like a waste of valuable free time, since it doesn’t really provide much enjoyment!

[SPL]

Would just like us to sign a proper quality coach.This is now the 3rd season out of 4 we have rubbish coaches who have no idea. Farioli was a pro and although the football was not Ajax like he did well although all his good work unravelled in the last 5 games.

Under Grim I now doubt we will finish in the top 3. We struggle to play 90 mins of footy at present . Grim can only work with the limited squad he has and Kroes mess will take time to sort out . Starting with Klaassen when you already have to play with the limited Reeger at 6 is a joke. Fitz-Jim or even Ouazane would be better

[Orange14]

What I find telling is except for Baas and possibly Godts every other player has under performed from last year!! Players who Farioli was trying to develop such as Fitz-Jim and perhaps Edvardssen have been tossed aside. Of course the biggest mystery is the absolute devotion to Klaassen. Grim and Heitinga must be lacking in cognitive ability in regards to this. Maybe it will remain a mystery as to why Farioli was tossed aside. The quality of the players were never going to be a "classic" Ajax team. Farioli may have adapted to a quicker style of football once he had some time and new players; he's doing this at Porto this season. Until this team gets quality MFs who can pass the ball quickly, they will continue to flounder. I was thinking about this yesterday and recalling a Jong Ajax match from maybe 2017 when the MR was de Jong, Nouri, and van de Beek. There was a night match I was watching and there were about 20 or so quick passes among the MFs before the ball was passed into the front line for a shot on goal.

I'll continue watching Ajax matches as it's pretty much the only team I follow these days. I do try to catch Wrexham matches because of the ongoing documentary series marking their move up the English football ladder. It's surprising to see Parkinon's team playing Ajax like football this season in the Championship. Doubtful that they will get promoted to the EPL but I think they will be secure in terms of staying up.

I hope Cruyff can bring in a new manager but I don't see any Dutch men other than Slot (if he gets sacked from Liverpool) who are up to the task. Maybe Guardiola believes he has finished his task at Man City and wants another challenge.

[SPL]

Nice post by Oranje agree Baas and Godts the only 2 from last season performing and all the others under performing .Those 2 plus Steur are the only 3 playing well,Bounida was moderate yesterday and I like him.

MF is our weakness and your quote of 2017 with Donny Frenkie and Appie brought back memories . I have only missed 3 games this season both cup games as they were not shown in Uk and Olympiakos game as TNT did not show it on tv but on their streaming service Discovery and I didn't have time to pay for and access at the last moment .

Ajax are the only team I follow or care about but they are poor and it would be nice if we had a new coach back in January as Grim is woeful.

PS There was a friendly today v Telstar we won 2-0 started with all of yesterdays subs plus Berghuis. F-Jim got 1 and Zinchenko with a well taken goal. I do hope he now starts in our remaining 12 games. He still looked 3 classes better than Wijndal yesterday in his short period.

[Tom_]

The speed of ball movement is really key as you said Orange.

Donny and Ziyech lived on first time passes. Schöne and Tadic were quick thinkers too. It seems crazy now, but I used to get annoyed by Frenkie de Jong and Ryan Gravenberch holding on to the ball for too long! Both light years better than anyone in the current squad.

Steur is a glimmer of hope because he is always looking for a pass before he even receives the ball (actually reminds me of Clarence Seedorf slightly). I don’t think any of the other players are capable of playing this type of football. Maybe Bounida and Fitz Jim but both have been inconsistent so far.