Lars Capiau
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The gentlemen at the table Studio Football expect PSV to come out on top next week when Peter Bosz's team takes on Ajax. Ajax's 'weak' last line will be the deciding factor, they suspect.
“The difference is of course huge,” answers regular table guest Ibrahim Afellay when asked which of the two teams has the best cards for next week's top match.
“PSV is simply in the luxury position that they can simply lose that match at Ajax and then there is nothing to worry about,” Afellay begins his argument.
“They have so much individual quality. They can score a goal at any time and out of nowhere. And Ajax's weakness lies precisely in that last line,” the former PSV player exposes the vulnerability of the Amsterdam team.
The threatening vanguard of PSV and the defensively vulnerable Ajax will ultimately lead PSV to victory, or so the prediction is. “With players like Johan Bakayoko, Hirving Lozano, Luuk de Jong, Malik Tillman…,” Afellay sums up.
The former international then accompanies some images of the match between Ajax and Heracles Almelo (2-4 win). Afellay is forced to draw a hard conclusion. “Defensively, it's still a hole in the wall at Ajax.”
“Offensively there is a real upward trend and you also see patterns there, but…” Pierre van Hooijdonk abruptly interrupts his tablemate. “That defense is just Young Ajax,” he says in amazement.
“Yes, the average age is nineteen years old Pierre, what do you expect?” Afellay quickly jumps into the breach for the young Ajax defenders. “That right back (Tristan Gooijer, ed.) has just been fitted in, Ar'Jany Martha is actually a winger and is placed at left back.”
“Hato is seventeen years old and still makes his mistakes,” Afellay concludes his summary. “And rightly so, that is also allowed. But he is then expected to provide leadership.”
“If Ajax sets up these four (at the back, ed.), it's all over for PSV,” Van Hooijdonk then says. Tablemate Michiel Kramer agrees. “The front four at Ajax are really good, but the guys behind them are just searching.”
“They are of course very young, so you cannot expect them to immediately lead the entire team, but normally PSV is the parent party. If they leave the spaces as large as in recent weeks, I expect PSV is a little further,” concludes the RKC striker.
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