Thursday, March 18, 2021 at 10:58 PM• Last update: 23:15

Ajax has secured a place in the quarter finals of the Europa League on Thursday evening. After a 3-0 win over Young Boys, Erik ten Hag’s team won 0-2 in Switzerland, thanks to goals from David Neres and Dusan Tadic. Football zone judges the basic players of Ajax with a score.

Maarten Stekelenburg: 7
Stekelenburg did not look very convincing with his performance at the rejected 1-2 of Young Boys: he got out after Vincent Sierro’s cross and was therefore not in the right position when Jean-Pierre Nsame scored at the far post. Stekelenburg was fortunate that the goal did not count. However, there was little to criticize about his other interventions. He boxed a hard shot from Christian Fassnacht well away and he finished his goal in time to put that same Fassnacht off the ball. Fifteen minutes before the end, Stekelenburg also made meters to convincingly clear a cross from Marvin Spielmann, after which he also stood at the basis of a chance from Oussama Idrissi with a nice kick.

Devyne Rensch: 5.5
In the first half there was not much to do for Rensch. The right back lost his three games and lost the ball after seventeen minutes, resulting in a serious chance for Miralem Sulejmani. After the break, Rensch played a bigger role, because his shot resulted in a penalty for Ajax due to a handball from Mohamed Camara. After Tagliafico’s substitution, Rensch moved to left back position and immediately received an apparently unjustified yellow card. The defender also lost three of his three matches after the break, did not play a very happy match and was replaced by Perr Schuurs eleven minutes before the end.

Edson Álvarez: 6.5
With a few good interventions, Álvarez was able to distinguish himself early in the game. At a key moment, he knocked Meschack Elia off the ball into the penalty area, then corrected Rensch’s aforementioned mistake by blocking Sulejmani’s shot. Álvarez escaped when he stopped a Sulejmani cross with his arm and the arbitration did not award a penalty kick. He held his arm awkwardly at his sides.

Lisandro Martínez: 7
Due to the awkward entry of Martínez, Elia had free passage towards the goal after twelve minutes. But otherwise Martínez was alert: he had the most defensive actions at Ajax, six pieces, and narrowly removed a shot from Nsame in front of the goal line with the knee. He was also the Ajax player who most often conquered the ball: eleven times.

Nicolás Tagliafico: 7
With his fierce tackles, Tagliafico risked a yellow card several times, which would have resulted in a suspension for the quarterfinals. But his fierceness also brought good things, such as when the left back cleverly knocked Sulejmani off the ball after 33 minutes of play, when he drew to the first post after a corner and headed on goal, or when he scored in the second half with a interception triggered a swift outbreak, which resulted in a shot from substitute Mohammed Kudus. Steaming on the left yielded few tangible results for the Argentinian. Seventeen minutes before the end, Tagliafico made way for Sean Klaiber.

Ryan Gravenberch: 7.5
Gravenberch had an unfortunate start to the match, but soon recovered. A measured corner resulted in a header chance for Tagliafico after sixteen minutes; with an excellent capture of the ball in midfield, Gravenberch was at the basis of the 0-1. Shortly thereafter, the youth exponent claimed the ball in a potentially imminent breakout. Gravenberch sent the most passes (55) and successful passes (50) of all Ajax players.

Davy Klaassen: 7.5
Shortly after the break, Klaassen should have livened up his game with a goal, when he was able to print completely free from close range. It was a significant moment in the match in which Klaassen did not perform his tasks too conspicuously: he headed away corners, intercepted balls in midfield, extended the ball in the build-up and was flawless in the passing: 35 of the 37 passes arrived.

Daley Blind: 7
Blind, just back from an injury, played on paper as a left half. However, he pulled in a lot and helped the build-up forward with ball conquests in midfield or nice openings to the left. He led in a big chance for Tadic after 31 minutes of play and an opportunity for Antony in minute 41. Ten Hag chose to substitute Blind, who not only struggled with knee complaints but was also on edge, in the second half. Until then, Blind was the man who had sent the most passes (45) and successful passes (39) of all field players.

Antony: 6.5
Antony was not happy in all his actions, but especially in the first half combined easily with his teammates in the Young Boys half. For example, a nice long ball from Antony after 37 minutes led to a shooting opportunity for Tagliafico. In addition, Antony often withdrew to his own half to perform his defensive duties. In the second half, the winger was less ahead and ten minutes before the end, he made way for Brian Brobbey.

Dusan Tadic: 8
The captain was of great value, preparing the 0-1 and making the 0-2 himself. Before the 0-1 he got the ball with some luck between two defenders at Neres; the way in which Tadic kept the overview was commendable. The 0-2 came from a penalty that was not shot perfectly, but turned out to be sufficient. On the whole, Tadic played a strong match, in which he again held the ball and easily combined with teammates. Seven minutes before the end, he had a wonderful cross pass towards Idrissi, which gave him a shooting opportunity.

David Neres: 7
Neres played a leading role in Bern in making the 0-1. From a not too easy angle, the Brazilian finished in a controlled manner. There were times when he failed to look for depth when it was possible, but at other times he combined well with teammates. In the second half, for example, he delivered a razor-sharp cross to Klaassen, who was allowed to strike from close range and should have scored. Neres played a good game, but Ten Hag made a logical choice to replace him halfway through the second half, as he was on edge.