Smile is back at Ajax after three straight wins under John Heitinga. Until the cunning RKC Waalwijk came to visit the Johan Cruijff Arena to spoil the mood. That worked in the first half and most of the second half. It ended with a hiss: 3-1.
The first half of Heitinga’s first home game was somewhat similar to Heitinga’s debut as head coach at Excelsior. With Francisco Conceição on the right, Ajax barely managed to pose a threat to Steven Bergwijn, who was not in great form.
Losing the ball the organization was wrong and the RKC has always found the free man, especially through Iliass Bel Hassani. Visitors were also given some options. In the 17th minute, RKC even scored after a stunning counterattack from Bel Hassani, Pelle Clement and Julen Lobete. Mats Seuntjens sent the ball into the corner without making any mistakes.
Heitinga intervenes
Ajax’s performance exploded at halftime, and Heitinga took action. Calvin Bassey and Brian Brobbey came on for Davy Klaassen and Conceição. Tadic remained front centre, Brobbey started from the left, Steven Berghuis moved to the right wing and Mohammed Kudus was the “10”.
The changes took effect quickly. Etienne Vaessen made a bet from Berghuis and Brobbey only had to touch the ball on the far post. It was supposed to be the start of a convincing second half but things got tough for the Amsterdam side and the second goal was delayed for a long time.
Kudus was close with a post shot, but on the other hand, RKC was still menacing, albeit more sparingly than in the first act. With the help of Gerónimo Rulli, Seuntjens shot for a second shot from about forty meters away, but luckily for the Argentine goalkeeper, the RKC player was deemed offside.
Wood breaks the spell
Ajax and Heitinga’s liberation came in the 78th minute. A Berghuis free kick in front of the goal was taken by Edson Álvarez with the head, and Bassey intervened and Jurriën Timber scored. After the middle of Berghuis, Kudus hit from the left and made the score 3-1.
And then “Oh Johnny” reverberated around the arena, showing that RKC had failed to break the celebratory mood in Amsterdam. Heitinga’s substitutions worked and after AZ, PSV, Feyenoord and FC Twente, Ajax also scored three points in round 21 of the Eredivisie.
Source: NOS
I’m George Gonzalez, a professional journalist and author at The Nation View. With more than 5 years of experience in the field, I specialize in covering sports news for various print media outlets. My passion for writing has enabled me to craft stories that capture the attention of readers all over the world.
