Ajax coach Erik ten Hag provided a surprise by posting Lassina Traoré in the striker’s away match against Atalanta (2-2). The striker, who scored five goals in the away match against VVV-Venlo last Saturday, paid back the confidence of his trainer, because he was involved in both hits in Bergamo. Ten Hag is full of praise for Traoré afterwards.

Traoré was knocked out after half an hour of play by Robin Gosens, after which the ball hit the spot and Dusan Tadic gave Ajax the lead. Eight minutes later, the striker doubled the margin himself, although that lead disappeared after the break due to two goals from Dúvan Zapata. “He was super strong, just what we needed,” it says Algemeen Dagblad from the mouth of Ten Hag. “I thought he played very well. If I compare him to last year against Getafe … ”

Traoré played for 67 minutes in the first leg of the second round of the Europa League against Getafe last season and could not count on that. Ajax lost that match in Spain 2-0. “It was really a boy then, but Lassina played like a guy against Atalanta. That was exactly what we needed in this match. He did an excellent job and we created something several times because he was our point of contact and we could continue playing football.

Only one Ajax player did play sovereignly against Atalanta

Voetbalzone handed out scores to the basic players of Ajax.View report

“It went well, he is a good player and I am happy that he scored”, Tadic says about Traoré’s game in conversation with Ajax TV. The Serbian attacker was disappointed with the draw in Bergamo. “Yes of course. We wanted three points. At half time it was 0-2 and everything was fine, but then we conceded the goals too quickly. I don’t know exactly what happened, I have to look back at those goals. But if we lose the ball, we really have to switch faster to help our defense. ”

“They always say that 2-0 or 0-2 is the most dangerous score there is, so we agreed at half-time that we wanted to keep playing the same and look for the third goal. Then you make it easier for yourself. But instead they got the belief that they could score, ”Tadic continues. “Atalanta is a good opponent, but we have to think bigger. Not being satisfied, always wanting more: that is the Ajax mentality. I also think we can do even better. ”

“I think they came out of the dressing room slightly differently. Nevertheless, we have to make the 0-3. Then it is finished, but we failed to do that ”, Davy Klaassen analyzes in front of the camera SBS6. The midfielder is disappointed by the way the two goals against Dúvan Zapata were scored. “It looked a bit too easy for us. They came through it too simply, that is not allowed. Although we know of course that Zapata is a good striker, he is always available. But still: this was unnecessary. ”