Tag: Antony

by Jan

Alfred Schreuder’s Ajax plans

Alfred Schreuder impressed in his early coaching days, at FC Twente and PSV and made his way from assistant coach (Ten Hag, Nagelsmann, Koeman) to title winning head coach, at Club Brugge.

He was seen as instrumental in the 2019 success campaign with Ajax and is now back at the club, in the head coach role. His plans and ideas for the new season…

“I can see the team getting sharper and the chemistry is growing really well amongst the new lads. The mainstay players are back and hitting their usual levels and we have some new blood now as well. Last season, we had a couple of set backs to deal with her. The CL loss versus Benfica was a shock to the system, but so was Antony’s injury. Despite the weaker second half last season, I can see the patterns of the first season’s half emerging again. That is our platform.”

Mohammed Kudus

“We have some much attacking talent. Let me mention Kudus. He came as a midfielder, a number 8 or 10. We didn’t see much of him due to his injury woes, but I love playing him higher up the pitch. He is such an intuitive player, to play him in midfield means I have to restrict him. He needs to play more tactical. Not his strength. If I play him in a free flowing false 9 role, call it the Tadic role, he shows some real quality. He is unpredictable. I love that in a player. He’s strong, he’s quick and he doesn’t stick to one particular thing. He is one of the players that exceeded my expectations.”

Multi-functional

“I love players like Kudus, who can play in different roles. I mean, Tadic…he can play in the 10 role, as a striker and as a left winger. Same with Steven Bergwijn. Berghuis can play the 10 or the right wing or even in a midfield role as an double pivot holding mid. Daley Blind can play in 3 roles, Timber can play in different spots, I can keep on going like this. This way, I don’t have to have a “core eleven”. I can switch it up anywhich way. Depending on the opponent, the form of the day, the specific circumstances of the day. It’s abundance for me as a coach, as if I have 44 first squad players. You don’t win trophies with eleven players…”

Competition

“Yes there is competition of course, but also collaboration. We are doing this as a team. We have several players for only a limited number of positions. I can only field 3 midfielders, but I have 6 top options. It’s not a problem for me. It’s just my job. If a player doesn’t play for 6 matches in a row, yes, he’ll get frustrated, I get that. But we will play a match every 4 days so rotation is the name of the game. My job is to make sure all players feel seen and are happy. Playing or not playing.”

Patterns

“Some people say you can only get these automations and patterns when you play the same eleven. Not true of course. You can work on these with all players so it becomes even easier to rotate and use different players. There will be subtle changes, but the time that a player could only play with one particular team mate or something is over. We have 3 or 4 possible left backs, in Blind, Wijndal, Bassey and Rensch. Tadic will have to be able to play with all of them and knowing what the particular strengths are of the different players.”

Fitness levels

“Remko Pasveer, Jurrien Timber and Antony are recovering really well. They’ll be making their first minutes soon. With Antony, we get more options as he is amazing on the wide side, but he can also play in the half spaces, close to Berghuis. We’ll experiment more with those options. Timber might not be ready for the Johan Cruyff Shield. We’ll be careful with him, we envision a long season.”

Level of play

“We are focusing on the way we played in the first half of last season. The level was really high and we know we can touch on that again, as our benchmark. We need to see the positive energy again, the joy of playing. If we can muster that in combination with the quality we have, we should be doing really well again. We will build on what Erik ten Hag did here. Our way of pressing will need to adapt a bit. We need to get more different options. Feyenoord also presses high but they do it differently to us. We used to use our wingers to put pressure on the half spaces and the centre back. Feyenoord uses their #10 to put pressure on the centre back. An interesting option for us to check as well. A lot is also depending on how much space the opponent has between their centre backs. If the space is too wide, our #10 pressing will mean our other midfielders are facing a man more. Which might not be ideal. And all these choices have flow on effects for the wingers and the other players. It’s like conducting a symphony, isn’t it?”

Pressing

“I studied Bayern Munich’s pressing under Hansi Flick. They were able to press anywhere and in any combination. It looked like chaos but they all joined in and it was glorious to see how they all participated. It requires trust and team work because if one player doesn’t participate, you’re gone. I am working hard with the lads to make sure they can recognise the patterns. What to do when the opponent plays with the centre backs close together, or… when they are more wide. I need players to come up with solutions. I don’t want to pre-chew their food.  Take the Red Bull Salzburg game, who started playing long balls. I am keen to see how our team deals with that, without me jumping up from the bench to yell instructions.”

The Key Players

“I spend a lot of time with the players whom I expect to be able to take charge on the pitch. Tadic, Blind, Klaassen, Timber and Berghuis are those guys. I need to them to recognise situations and patterns. These lads are all tactically astute and need to be more pro-active in their football thinking. Yes, it’s called football but it could have been named brainball…”

Schreuder’s talks

“I talk a lot with the players. I need to know how they feel about things, what their beliefs are and how they process certain things. I also need to get to know them personally. What motivates or triggers them. Take Mohammed Kudus, I spent time with him also to explain that my choices do not mean I don’t see him as a midfielder. I don’t want players to become anxious when I do something unpredictable. I need them to see my point, just like I want to see their points.”

Build up

“I like to build up with three players from the back. And I need them to be higher up, so we can create more effective triangles. When we play against a 5-4-1 it won’t really work, there will not be enough space, but I need to make sure we can use our players’ strengths. Antony is very good with his back to the touch line. But Tadic is better in the half spaces. Bergwijn can do both very well. Last week, I trained with three at the back: Blind, Rensch and Timber. And Rensch has got some development to make, to realise his positioning. When we’re in possession, it goes well. He really understands where to be, but when we lose possession, he’s drifting too much. A bit like Mazraoui in the beginning. He had that too. It takes time. We’re also working hard on different options in midfield. When Alvarez is marked, what does Berghuis do and vice versa. I now want to try out Ken Taylor in the Frenkie role. I think he can play that role but I need to work it still. That is for next week. We’re also trying to get some variance in the build up. At times, I want to pivot the full backs. Keeping the right back deep and move Timber into midfield. Or vice versa. Against Salzburg, we were faced with a diamond in midfield. Interesting. Rensch forgot to follow the left midfielder, who at times came into the left winger role. These are the details we are working on now.”

Target man

“We almost have a well-balanced squad but I miss a target man. We don’t have one of these and you can really use them in certain situations. Take Luuk de Jong at Barca. Haller can be dangerous from crosses from the wings and he’s not longer here. Brobbey is not that type and I think it will be hard to find a 25 year old to play that role. You’re more looking at a Luuk de Jong or a Klaas Jan Huntelaar in his last phase here at Ajax. We are still looking for a strong header to take that role.”

Players leaving

“I can be brief about this topic: as far as I am concerned, no one leaves now. Tagliafico is the last to go. Antony will stay at Ajax. Not for sale. Martinez went to Man United and we signed Calvin Bassey in his place. A strong player, who can also play left back. Giving us an extra option. Blind and Bassey can both play centrally too. I haven’t used Daley as midfielder yet, and I think I will. I know he’s capable in that role. He is so good tactically. He is one of those players who can easily slot into a new position.”

Francisco Conceicao

“What a player! He is young, he has a tremendous dribble one v one. He has a lot of potential. He is leaving Porto and his dad because he can see Ajax is the ideal next step for him. He has a great mentality. We had some good talks with his dad, who used to be a top top player too. He finds it hard that his son is leaving but he also knows Ajax is a great club for his development and next steps. He knows his son will be in good hands. We signed him as a stand in for Antony, and we’ll give him time to get used to the game and our squad.”

Goal keepers

“The battle of the goalies is still open. Stekelenburg started so well too, but he got injured. I do think he’ll be back soon. But all three are top. Pasveer has that calm and cool, while Gorter is very lively, a mega talent. Gorter is ready to go but I think we will wait with our decision until all goalies are fit. I am also focusing on the partnership with the central defenders. I think they’re quite equal in their qualities, they all three are great with their feet too.”

Mo Ihattaren

“The club is in contact with him. That is all I can say. I focus on the players I have at my disposal and at this stage, Mo is not ready. He’s dealing with some nasty personal business. We have a trainings program for him and I hope we’ll see him soon again.”

The title battle

“I will be between the top 3 again. PSV has done amazing business, and they had to too, due to their CL ambitions. Feyenoord is a bit slow again but they did good business late in the window last season and Slot has demonstrated he doesn’t need a lot of time to gel a good team. But we’ll focus on ourselves. We have a top squad again and we will keep on building on our own strengths.”

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by Jan

Benfica – Ajax: two faced match

Ajax could and should have beaten Benfica in the first leg in Portugal. In a time where a draw away versus a Portuguese top team is lamented as a disappointing results (have we forgotten that we hardly ever won against Portuguese teams, home or away??), Ajax can look back on a decent first half.

Ten Hag explained his choice for Gravenberch over Klaassen in geometrical terms: “With Klaassen I can play vertical, Davey loves his forward runs. But i want to put the emphasis on the width of the park. And Gravenberch is the player for this.” Huh??

Before the half time break. Ten Hag appears to get it right. What Ten Hag described worked. Seb Haller scores the 1-2, and like Ajax’ first goal, it is the result of the tactical hocus pocus of the bald maestro.

In the first half, Benfica is trying to pressure Ajax with a 4-4-2. When that fails, Ramos drops back into midfield to make life hard for Alvarez, trying to stop Ajax finding the free man in the midfield.

In defensive terms, Ajax plays man to man on midfield, as per usual. Alvarez on Ramos, Berghuis makes life hard for Weigl and Gravenberch is up against Adel Taarabt. The pressure play is done by Antony. The right winger is constantly pushing towards Vertonghen, from his position vis a vis Grimaldo. Mazaroui pops up behind Antony in the half space whenever he can.

That patterns is clear to see right before the first Ajax goal. Antony leaves Grimaldi open to push Vertonghen. Goalie Odysseas opens to his left back, assuming he’s got time and space. But Mazraoui pounces like an eagle and pushes the Spaniard off the ball, he combines with Antony and assists the Tadic goal. Seven seconds between the turn over and the ball in the net. It happens so often: the high press resulting in a goal for Ajax.

The way Ajax gifts the equaliser to Benfica must have Ten Hag pulling out all his hair. If he had hair. Martinez is paired with Vertonghen but due to a block, the Argentinian loses him and Mazraoui takes over his duties. But the right back slips and Vertonghen finds himself with time and space. The ex Ajax defender hits the ball in, where Pasveer fails to stop the cross in. And Haller doesn’t count on the goalie’s omission and stands on his heels, not able to move his feet: 1-1.

Still, Ajax gains control swiftly again. The second goal demonstrates why Gravenberch is in the team. Ten Hag has been harping on about pulling the opponent wide. Using the width to create openings in the opponent set up. Another aspect to focus in on, is Timber’s runs into midfield. His opponent Nunez is not one to defend and he allows Timber to become and extra midfielder. Benfica plays zonal and has two player on their right hand side. Ajax puts three players opposite these two. With winger Tadic, left back Blind and midfielder Gravenberch almost hugging the line. Silva is pulled towards the ball by Blind, Berghuis took the left winger role for a bit while Tadic is in the centre and the former Feyenoord talisman crosses the ball into Haller who has two bites of the cherry: 1-2.

This is not a coincidence, because just before the break, this same situation results in another chance for Haller. Timber is in midfield again and Gravenberch plays like an extra left winger and the Benfica defence is getting confused. Ajax opens with a cross ball to the right, where Antony has space one on one. He launches Alvarez and the Mexican hits the post with his shot. The rebound is just to hard for Haller to control with his left.

In the second half. Benfica coach Verissimo plays the joker. Yaremchuk comes as an extra striker. Now, there are three central strikers on the pitch for Benfica and Ajax starts get countered more often, with four Benfica forwards threatening the Ajax goal.

In an attacking sense, Ajax’ wing backs have more space to attack but when the ball is lost, the Benfica forwards have space and time and the game opened up massively.

This is the lead up to the Benfica equaliser: Timber is in the opposing box and in my view, he makes a mistake by simulating an injury, to get a penalty. The slow-mo shows he wasn’t touched. He’s down though and as Gravenberch, Tadic, Blind, Haller and Antony are also up field, the rest defence consists of Alvarez, Berghuis, Martinez and Mazraoui. The Mexican is played out by Silva and the move ends with a distance strike by Ramos. Usually, a low percentage option. Pasveer blocks the shot but the ball drops right in front of the empty goal where Yaremchuk is simply quicker than Berghuis: 2-2.

Ten Hag responds by bring a better defender for left back with Tagliafico. The Argentinian can bomb up the flank too and Klaassen is coming in for Gravenberch. Ajax wants control back. But Benfica is happy with the draw and switch back to a 5-4-1 system and starts to run out the clock.

Benfica ends up being joyous with the draw which is another indication of the big chance Ajax missed to get one leg into the next round. Benfica can now play defensively in Amsterdam and play on the counter attack.

Oh, and it has to be said…. Daley Blind played a terrible game….

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by Jan

Missing: the 2019 U-17 Oranje Talents

Main Pic:  Back row: Calvin Raatsie, Devyne Rensch, Jayden Braaf, Melayro Bogarde, Anass Salah-Eddine and Mohamed Taabouni. Up front: Steven van der Sloot, Ian Maatsen, Youri Regeer, Sontje Hansen and Naci Ünüvar.

It’s summer 2019 and the U17 Oranje team wins the European title and just misses the World Cup title some months later in Brazil.

These talents are now more than 2 years older and more experienced and hammering on the doors of the first teams. Or… are they?

AZ midfielder Taabouni: “That World Cup in Brail was a highlight in my life. It was bittersweet, though. We went as favorites and just couldn’t make it happen after a slow start.” Oranje lost the penalty kicks vs Mexico and Brazil ended up winning gold.

“It was special. It was in Brazil, which was amazing. We really started badly but found our groove in time, only to lose painfully. The media started to write us up and our belief was 100%. But … I missed one, too. You’ll never forget that moment. But, it was incredible as well.”

The attacking mid was one of the key players in that Golden Generation and when he returned to Holland, he made his debut in AZ 1. But it took almost two years for him to play his second match. He does train with the first squad and plays his football in Jong AZ, at the second tier in Holland.

Taabouni

“It’s tough. I train with the big players and I think I can play along nicely with them so I want to be able to show it. My friends Stengs, Boadu and Wijndal are doing really well at top level and I feel I’m ready too. But I need patience. It’s tough, mentally but I am growing and becoming more mature so I can deal with it. I also became stronger physically.”

AZ’s midfield needs to run. A lot. “This was the situation under Slot and it is still the case. The stats showed it too and Slot was constantly emphasizing it. Midfielders need to move. Now, my stats are amazing. I’m always in the top 3 of kilometers and sprints etc. It’s not fun, but it’s essential and when you can do what the coach wants ,you do notice everything becomes easier. In the beginning I was spent after 70 minutes, but now my capacity has gone way up. I’m now almost 20 years old and my aim is to succeed here. Although… my contract is running out…”

AZ is doing what it can to keep the midfielder but international interest has popped up already for him. Same for his mate Anass Salah-Eddine of Ajax. Sparta was keen to sign him for the first team but Ajax refused to let him go. So Anass will remain in Amsterdam where he is the training opposition to Brazilian Antony.

“That is perfect practice,” he laughs. “When you can stop Antony from playing, you can stop anyone in the Eredivisie. He is so light, so quick, so fast. Our duels are tough but very educational for me. The one v one defending is one of my weaker points, so I grow a lot.”

Anass Salah-Eddine

Salah-Eddine is happy to play. Shortly after the World Cup he got injured badly: tore his ankle ligaments and broke his leg. “That was tough. I lost faith in my own body. And suddenly all that attention disappeared, even some of my friends left, I mean… I had to do it all by myself.” Now, 8 months later, he’s playing again. “I’m still not 100% you know. I now focus on enjoying the games. Mentally, I am way stronger, and physically I’m stronger too. I spent a year in the gym. No one gets me on the ground. Well, okay… Brian Brobbey probably can, hahaha.”

His role as full back has changed, with Daley Blind and Noussair Mazraoui demonstrating weekly what it means to be a full back: you need to defend and stop your man, but you also need to be key in the build up and find your way in between the lines to move into midfield. “You need to be able to do everything as a back these days. I sometimes play in midfield in Jong Ajax, that is new but I think I become a better player this way.”

Goalie Bart Verbruggen had a stellar career jump when he went from NAC to Anderlecht and suddenly played some games in the first team under Kompany when Van Crombrugge was injured. His colleagues in Brazil, Raatsie and Troost are still playing in the youth teams of Ajax and Feyenoord, respectively.

Devyne Rensch

The defenders appear to be the quickest to move up. Devyne Rensch is only 19 years old but has 45 Ajax 1 games to his name. In the Ajax youth, he played centrally, but Ten Hag uses the youngster as a right back. He even made his debut in the Big Oranje team.

Ki-Jana Hoever is making his name in England. He went from Liverpool to Wolves where they presented him with a good development plan. 45 million euro signing Semedo is in front of him but Hoever already player 23 EPL games for the Wanderers.

Melayro Bogarde has been developed well at Hoffenheim but decided to go to Groningen this winter to get more game time. Steven van der Sloot (Ajax) and Yannick Leliendal (VVV) had to be more patient. Ian Maatsen went to England at a young age and made his debut for Chelsea under Lampard. He is now being readied via loan deals with Charlton Athletic and Coventry City. He plays everything in the Championship and rules as wingback on the left.

Ajax’ Unuvar

Kenneth Taylor and Youri Regeer are making good progress. Taylor has had regular sub turns under Ten Hag and scored his first Eredivisie goal against Heracles. Regeer made his debut in December and has signed a new deal with Ajax. Dirk Proper of NEC has had several offers from international clubs and the Top 3 in Holland but he decided to stay in Nijmegen, where he played several Eredivisie matches.

Up front, Naci Unuvar and Sontje Hansen were seen as the big guns. But both players recently expressed concerns physically, over the pressure on the body at top level.
Unuvar found his groove again for Ajax, in Jong Ajax, with the most goals and assists. Naoufal Bannis, the striker in Brazil, has also had a chance to test his metal in Feyenoord 1. He has Bryan Linssen and Cyriel Dessers in front of him so he left for NAC on loan where he is first choice.

Jayden Braaf has been loaned to Udinese, by Man City where he became the youngest goalscorer ever in the Serie A. He is currently back in Manchester, recovering from a knee injury. Romano Postema is on loan with FC Den Bosch but is knocking on the Groningen door. Soulyman Allouch is playing for Jong AZ again after a lot of injury woes. Pinch hitter Djenairo Daniels has seen his contract tore up at FC Utrecht.

Naoufal Bannis, now at NAC Breda

The Current Under-17 Team

The current U-17 team is playing qualification games in March for the Euros in Israel this Summer, where we defend the title. Team manager Mischa Visser on three of the key talents in that team.

Julian Rijkhoff (17) – Borussia Dortmund

Rijkhoff started as a talent at Ajax when he was 7 years old. He signed his first pro contract at 16 years old, but not in Amsterdam! Visser: “Julian is the complete striker. He can play with his back to goal, he has good technique and a strong physique. But he is also a good runner without the ball and loves making runs in behind. He is very goal oriented and even though he’s just 17 years old, he is a starter in Dortmund Under-19. That is very good.”

Mike Kleijn (16) – Feyenoord

Born in Breda, Mike saw interest from Ajax, PSV and Feyenoord. The midfielder chose Rotterdam and made his debut in the first team already. He is the skipper in the Oranje U-17 team and Feyenoord’s U-18 team. “He is a typical leader on the pitch, as a controlling mid. He is very intelligent and recognises space well and reads the game well. He is wonderful in the positioning game and is able to see situations earlier than others.”

Isaac Babadi (16) – PSV

The youngster went from NEC to PSV in 2018 and the attacking mid is going through a rocket-speed development, also playing as a winger. Ruud van Nistelrooy allowed him  his debut in Jong PSV already. Visser: “He’s very technical and a real passionate player. Highly creative and he would prefer to pick up the ball from the goalie and dribble to the other goal. He’s fast and unpredictable. He’s also an example of how to react when we lose possession. He’s a real role model, als in his personality. Always positive and open, with great work ethics.”

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by Jan

Steven Berghuis: European Top!

Trust me, I didn’t write this post after Ajax – Besiktas. I started this post a day before. But Berghuis’ goal and assist do carry weight of course, considering today’s topic.

This is also not to keep on hammering home a point. This article was in Voetbal International this weekend and it seems only fair to bring this to your attention. As I know this blog has a number of Berghuis fans and Berghuis haters.

Only a month ago, Davy Klaassen position as Ajax’ #10 seemed not open for debate. Mr 1-0, as he is called, seemed to cruise in that role and last season he got 12 goals and 2 assists for his club, as midfielder.

And yes, Kudus and Berghuis could also play the #10 role, but Klaassen wouldn’t be easy to replace.

Berghuis was signed as a right winger, as alternative for Antony. And friend and foe knew, that was going to be a hell of a competition for Berghuis.

In the 3rd Eredivisie match vs Vitesse, Berghuis was even benched and he saw the Brazilian mercurial winger explode, scoring 3 assists.

Ten Hag did use Berghuis in that match, but as sub for the #10 position. Ten Hag: “I said it before, we have to start the competition while we are still trying to gel the team together. We have several players for the #10 role but they’re all a bit different in their execution. I will keep on trying things out when we can, because we need to be as flexible as possible. This particular move worked well and I might try this more often. But it takes time for players to get used to each others moves and patterns. But good players always find a way to play together.”

After the international break, with Berghuis in a key role as a winger, Klaassen returned with a slight injury and the former Feyenoord captain was placed in the #10 role again. Against PEC Zwolle, he had two assists. In the Sporing Lisbon game he scored his first goal and created several chances. Against Cambuur he scored and assisted and versus Fortuna Sittard he scored as well while creating two goals against FC Groningen.

And thus, the discussion started: does Klaassen deserve a protected role? Ten Hag: “No one has a protected role in our team. Davy is a starter, yes, but we have many. We simply look at form and fitness. But we also check what the match needs and what the opponents’ strengths and weaknesses are.” Is Ten Hag able to keep all his players happy? “That is the job of a coach. You don’t control that, 100% but you have to manage it anyway. The team is always more important than the individual. Every player needs to realise this.”

The Berghuis stats are imposing. He was involved in 8 goals in the Eredivisie this season. The only one bettering him is team mate and captain Dusan Tadic, who was involved 9 times. Bryan Linssen (Feyenoord) and Seb Haller are third.  Berghuis created 16 chances for team mates. Tadic, Veerman (Heerenveen), Sinisterra (Feyenoord), Wittek (Vitesse) and Gakpo (PSV) are the only ones doing better than Berghuis.

But when we look at his previous seasons in the Eredivisie, Berghuis appears to be a guarantee for hoals. Since he came back from Watford in 2016, there was no player in Holland with more goals (72) than him. Linssen has 64 goals and Tadic has 57 since that time. The latter played less game though. There is also no player with more assists than Berghuis: 54 in 156 matches, followed by Ziyech and Tadic.

Lets look at Europe now. The big Five competitions and the Dutch Eredivisie. Since the 2016/17 season, Thomas Muller is the master assist king: 76 assists in 161 matches. Kevin de Bruyne is second with 68 assists in 155 games, and Messi has 64 in 174 games. Berghuis is fourth, with 54 in 156 matches. Fifth on the list is Papu Gomez (Atalanta and Sevilla) with 50 assists in 174 games.

 

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