Thomas van den Leeuwen - Making De Godenzonen The Kings Of Europe Again

[tomtuck01]

Five title wins in five seasons for me now, nine for the club.

Praise from Marco van Basten. I always like that.

[tomtuck01]

Thomas van den Leeuwen - AFC Ajax - February & March 2019

Eredivisie

February

Four wins from five meant we were so close to the title heading into March.

Just days after hammering NAC at home in the cup, (in February), we faced them away in the league and it was a much tougher game. They had the better of the chances throughout the game, but we took one of our few decent chances when Alexandre Pato scrambled home from close range. Another away game followed, this time at FC Twente, and we came away a bit disappinted that we only drew. We bossed the game in all honest, but didn't take the lead until the 82nd minute when Dejan Meleg fired home from 25yards out. Twente though got an equaliser two minutes from time when we failed to deal with a setpiece for the first time all day. 1-1 the final score, and to concede so late after scoring late ourselves was very annoying. VVV-Venlo then came to Amsterdam, and we struggled to a win. The only goal of the game came soon after the half-hour mark, when Alexandre Pato swept home Gabriel Fernando's low cross. Pato missed a penalty soon after, but we took all three points nonetheless. Another poor display. We then travelled to Groningen and gave a real thumping. We actually fell behind in the 25th minute, but by halftime we were 3-1 infront thanks to two penalties from Queensy Menig and a towering header from Damon Mirani. Further goals in the second half from Nicklas Røjkjær and Vaclav Cerny rounded off a 5-1 win. The month was rounded off with us dishing out another thrashing, this time to Cambuur. We laboured for most of the first period, but just before halftime Pato fired us ahead. Early in the second period Nikolai Laursen doubled our lead. Queensy Menig made the points totally safe three minutes from time, and sub Ezra Walian added some gloss to the scoreline in stooppage time with a fabulous strike from long range.

March

Four wins from five, and the title secured with victory over Volendam.

The month kicked off with De Klassieker against Feyenoord at the Amsterdam Arena, and we comfortably saw them in the end. We took the lead after just five minutes via Anwar El Ghazi, and comletely doominated the game thereafter. The result was settled late on, when Alexandre Pato tapped home Queensy Menig's centre. Another 2-0 win followed away at Go Ahead Eagles, and the came followed the same pattern. Queensy Menig headed home in the fifth minute and we had chances to add to the scoreline throughout the match, eventually sealing the win in the 89th minute via a Donny van de Beek freekick. Days later Volendam came to town with us needing victory to secure the title, and we tore them apart in the opening half an hour. After just three minutes Alexandre Pato got the party started, volleying home Ezra Walian's cross. Minutes later he doubled our lead, tucking home from the penalty spot after Jairo Riedewald was brought down. Pato sealed his hattrick in the 23rd minute, slamming home a freekick from over 25yards out. Three minutes later Nicklas Røjkjær placed a curling effort into the bottom corner after a lovly team move to make it four-nil. Volendam got one back in first half stoppage time, and we then failed to add to the scoreline in the second period, but we still won 4-1 to life the title in style. Against Utrecht in ou next league game we were a shambles, and should've been battered. We smehow only fell behind on the hour-mark, and then equalised fifteen minutes later via a Pato penalty. Even after that, we ad Utrecht's wayward finishing and goalkeeper Stan van Bladeren to thank for us taking home a point. PSV came to town at the end of the month for De Topper Derby, and we saw them off by four goals to two. After just two minutes we were a goal infront, Alexandre Pato slamming home from close range. Vaclav Cerny then tapped home in the eleventh minute after Pato's long range effort was saved. PSV soon pulled a goal back, and then in the first minute of the second period they had levelled things up. We rallied though, and soon after the hour Pato scored his second of the game to put us 3-2 ahead. With eight minutes to go Queensy Menig sealed all three points with a cool finish from Elton Acolatse's low cross.

A trip to face NAC Nijmegen is our opening fixture in April.

Champions League - 1st Knockout Round

February & March

Super stuff as we knocked out last seasons Serie A runners-up.

The first leg finished 1-1, with Inter reigning long range shots in on our goal, but seldom creating decent chances. One of those long shots went in minutes into the second half, but we soon got back into the game, and eventually equalised in the 74th minute through a cool Queensy Menig finish. A draw was ultimately fair, and gave us a great platform heading into the second leg. We got off to a great start in the second leg, with Alexandre Pato rattling home a great goal from the edge of the area. Inter then ramped up the pressure on us, and hit back in the 36th minute to make the tie all square on away goals. Straight away though we went back ahead, as Queensy Menig cut open the Inter defence with a great pass that put Vaclav Cerny through to lob the Inter goalkeeper. Truth be told we were rarely threatened after that, and I was a bit disappointed we didn't add to the scoreline. 2-1 as good enough though, and we were through to the quarter finals 3-2 on aggregate.

The quarter finals have seen us drawn against another Italian side - Juventus - with the first leg at home in Amsterdam.

[tomtuck01]

Martin Jol finally gave Abdelhak Nouri his international debut, giving him over half an hour of a European Championship Qualifier against Croatia.

[tomtuck01]

Thomas van den Leeuwen - AFC Ajax 2018/19

KNVB Beker Final

How We Got To The Final

Well this couldn't have been much simpler as we strolled to the final, keeping five cleansheets in five games. Lower league sides Appingedam (3-0) and Amsterdamsche FC (4-0) were seen off with no fuss in the 2nd and 3rd rounds. we then we had our only test of the competition against Den Bosch, who had won the trophy the past two seasons, in the fourth round. We saw them off thanks to a 1-0 win, but it was far from convincing. In the quarter finals we battered NAC Breda 6-0 at home, and then in the semi's we comfortably defeated Groningen 3-0 to set up a meeting with Go Ahead Eagles at De Kuip.

The Final

vs.Go Ahead Eagles

With no injuries all we had to worry about heading into the final was a bit tiredness after a Champions League fixture in midweek away in Turin. Most players had recovered well though, so I as free to pick who I wanted. I opted to play a back three, and that meant deciding between Damon Mirani and Nathan Leyder for the third centreback spot with Jairo Riedewald and Timothy Fosu-Mensah. Mirani got the nod, playing in the middle with the other two at his side. Elton Acolatse got the nod at left wingback ahead of Mitchell Dijks, and Dirk Lammers started at right wingback ahead of the more experienced Teun van Zweeden. Nikolai Laursen was paired in midfield with captain Donny van de Beek, and Vaclav Cery was selected behind the front pairing of Alexandre Pato and top scorer Queensy Menig.

Match Stats

My first KNVB Beker Final and we took home the trophy! I'm delghted.

We got off to a terrible start, falling behind in just the second minute when Go Ahead Eagles went ahead from a corner thanks to some slack marking on our part. Eight minutes later we were on level terms, with Vaclav Cerny calmly slotting home after getting on to the end of a cute Alexandre Pato pass. From then on there was probably only one winner, and just after the half our mark Cery put us infront, slamming home after Go Ahead failed to clear away an earlier poor attempt from Cerny himself. After that it was not so far off total control with Go Ahead mainly restricted to long range efforts after their earlier good chances. We finally wrapped the game up eight minutes from time when sub Ezra Walian's cross was divereted into Alexandre Pato's path who tapped in from a couple of yards.

[tomtuck01]

Reckon the board should be more happy - it's the first time the club has won the trophy since 2010. Ungrateful sods.

Marco van Basten loves me.

[Rikulec]

Shame you conceded that goal in the final though.

[tomtuck01]

Shame you conceded that goal in the final though.

Haha yeah I was a touch disappointed.

[john1]

Congrats on winning the cup Wow 20M for 1 international apperance?

Good luck against Juventus!

[tomtuck01]

Congrats on winning the cup Wow 20M for 1 international apperance?

Good luck against Juventus!

Reckon it was a bit of bug to be honest - got £9.5million for him initially aswell as the £20million on top of it.

[tomtuck01]

Thomas van den Leeuwen - AFC Ajax - April & May 2019

Eredivisie

April & May

Not a brilliant end to the season, but we remained unbaten meaning we're now 18 games without defeat.

The month began with a trip to NEC and we didn't put in a good performance and the game finished in a draw. After a drab first half we took the lead on the hour through Ezra Walian, but NEC hit back with seven minutes remaining and they deservedly took a point off us. Another draw followed away at AZ Alkmaar, and we against took the lead only to be pegged back. Nicklas Røjkjær curled us ahead in the 76th minute, but AZ equalised five minutes later to again deny us all three points. Vitesse Arnhem came to Amsterdam to round off April, and we sa them off with a solid 3-1 win. Vitesse went ahead in the 26th minute, but four minutes before the break Ezra Walian fired home an equaliser and then Dejan Meleg curled home a freekick to send us into halftime 2-1 up. In the second minute of stoppage time at the end f the second half Ezra Walian got his second to seal the win. Our final game of the season came in early May at home to Den Bosch. We dominated from the first whistle, and took the lead in the 37th minute via Alexandre Pato. Den Bosch though hit back immediately, and at halftime it was all square. Soon after the hour we went back infront thanks to a second goal from Pato, and in stoppage time Vaclav Cerny hit our third tapping home a terrific Queensy Menig cross.

A decent end to the campaign, even with the two away draws.

KNVB Beker - Final

April

A comfortable win in the end, but we had a scare early on! Go Ahead when infront in just the second minute as we failed to defend properly from a corner. Vaclav Cernyy, who would go on to be man of the match, equalised in just the tenth minute and then put us 2-1 up before halftime. Late on Alexandre Pato secured the trophy, tapping in from close range.

Not a great performance, but job done - 3-1 the final score.

Champions League - Quarter Finals

April

The dream is over for another year, but again I can't complain as my young side gave it their all.

After a cagey first half of the first leg in Amsterdame, Queensy Menig put us ahead twelve minutes into the second half, volleying home a cross from Elton Acolatse. Juventus dominated for long spells after that and deservedly drew level with just eleven minutes remaining. Juve were soon reduced to ten men after Paul Pogba recieved his second booking, and with just three minutes remaining Alexandre Pato got a big goal as he scrambled home Vaclav Cerny's parried effort. The second leg followed a familiar pattern for us in these away Champions League knockout games - domination from the home side and us playing purely on the counter. At halftime we had kept Juve at bay and even had the odd chance of our own. In just the seventh minute of the second period though Juventus went infront on the night, and also in the tie via the away goals rule. We pushed for an equaliser but couldn't find one, and in stoppage time Juventus caught us on the break and found the back of the net to make 2-0 on the night, and knock us out 3-2 in aggregat.

Disappointed, but not disheartened.

[tomtuck01]

Thoroughly deserved after a very good first season as a first team regular.

[tomtuck01]

Thomas van den Leeuwen - AFC Ajax - Season Review 2018/19

Eredivisie

Results 1 - Results 2

Final table - Champions

Same old, same old really - nice and easy as we finished over twenty points clear of second placed Feyenoord.

We won thirteen of our first fourteen games to really build up ahead of steam early on, and from that point onwards there was to be no challenge whatsoever. In the end we finished the season with the joint lowest points tally of my reign, so in that respect I can't be too happy with how things went. We did however do better defensively, conceding six goals less than in the previous two seasons.

We're now on an eighteen game unbeaten run, so the aim has to be to try and break our own record of 64 games unbeaten.

KNVB-Beker

Winners

Not only did we finally make it to the first cup final of my reign, but we also won it!

Apart from one tough game against the cup holders Den Bosch in the fourth round, we strolled to the final, not conceding a goal along the way and scoring seventeen goals in five games. The standout performance obviously came in the quarter finals as we thumped NAC Breda 6-0 at the Amsterdam Arena. In the final we met Go Ahead Eagles, and after a poor start where we fell behind in just the second minute, we comfortably won the game. It wasn't pur best display, but we did what was required and in the end ran out 3-1 winners.

Retaining the trophy next season has to be our aim.

Champions League

Eliminated in Quater Finals

Pleased to have made it to the quarter finals again, even if it wasn't quite as far as last terms semi-final. Ultimately we came up short against a better side.

We again had a very good group phas, winning five games and losing one. That defeat came in our last match after we had already qualified for the next round, and ultimately it didn't matter as we still finished above Atletico Madrid despite the loss. In fact Atletico were the only side we conceded against, as we kept cleansheets in all four of our other games againt Basel and Botev (Plovdiv). In the 1st knockout round we faced Italian side Internazinale and we overcame them 3-2 on aggregate. We managed a credible 1-1 draw in the first leg in Milan before beating them 2-1 back in Amsterdam. The quarter finals saw us drawn against Juventus, and they beat us 3-2 over two legs. We won the first leg late on thanks to Alexandre Pato, but they were just too good for us in the second leg, seeing us off 2-0.

A great effort again, but I think this about our level right now - anything after the quarter finals is a big bonus.

Other Information

Squad Stats - Transfers - Finances

Obscene amount of players used this season, and not a single one of them made 40 starts. Ten of them though were players aged nineteen or younger and made less than five appearances. Some of them are ready to play more next term, and some will be loaned out. I'll be formulating plans over the summer.

In the transfer market we had a typically good year, making a net profit of £100million. Two deals dominated the 'Players Out' section, with Niels van Zanten and Abdelhak Nouri making £62million for us between them. The obvious piece of stand-out business for us was the re-signing of Alexandre Pato who infact ended the season as our top scorer. A real bargain at £5million.

Financially we made good strides as usual - we're just over £50million better off than at this stage last year, and we're still awaiting Champions League TV revenue from this seasons comptition with the final a few days away at the time of writing this.

Player & Young Player

Of The Year

Queensy Menig

A very good season indeed from Menig who directly contributed to 30 goals this season, scoring 18 and assisting 12 in just 31 appearances. Whether he played upfront on his own, in a pair, or on the left wing, he seldom let his standards drop. Terrific coming-of-age season for him.

Vaclav Cerny

Superb season from the young man, in what was his first proper season in the first team. Outwide, upfront, or behind the strikers, he was a model of consistentcy throughout the campaign. Saddly, he's likely to be on his was this summer.

What Next

Attempt to keep hold of a few wantaway players. Vaclav Cerny is likely to go, as is captain Donny van de Beek. Both against my wishes. There maybe a bit of a clearout in actual fact as I make way for some younger players to come through.

[Northernpilgrim]

Would you consider taking the Holland job if it came up? It'd fit in with .our career as you could stay at Ajax, and could also use mostly your own homegrown players.

[tomtuck01]

Would you consider taking the Holland job if it came up? It'd fit in with .our career as you could stay at Ajax, and could also use mostly your own homegrown players.

Most certainly would yes. Hopefully Martin Jol will leave after next summers European Championships.

[john1]

Cracking season as usual, such a shame you didn't score in Italy against Juventus Surprised to see ADO finished 3rd

[tomtuck01]

Cracking season as usual, such a shame you didn't score in Italy against Juventus Surprised to see ADO finished 3rd

Over the two legs against Juvntus it probably wouldn't have been deserved in all honesty. Second leg especially they were just better than us.

As for ADO, they just had a striker in the form of his life. Someone called Mike van Duinen scored 25 goals in 28 appearances in the Eredivisie. Indeed his great form has last two years now - he's scored 47 goals in 55 league games over the last two seasons!

[tomtuck01]

Thomas van den Leeuwen - AFC Ajax - Season Preview - 2019/20

Board Expectations

Eredivisie - Win the title

KNVB Beker - Win it

Champions League - Not expected to progress past group stage

Johan Cruijff Schaal - Not important

Personal Expectations

Eredivisie - No.6 please

KNVB Beker - Retain

Champions League - Compete in the quarters

Johan Cruijff Schaal - It's De Klassieker - must win

The only real change in expectations this term comes from me - we're not currently good enough to compete alongside the elite in Europe, as Juventus ultimately showed last term, so merely putting up a fight in the quarter finals will do. Anything beyond that would be a real bonus for us. Aside from that, domestic expectations remain the same for both me and the board.

Budgets

Transfer: £380,312,801

Wages: £2,224,719 p/w (Currently spending £464,293)

Balance: £323,422,224 (+£49,042,263)

The transfer budget is irrelevant, but lord I wouldn't mind cutting that wage expenditure - we're spending nearly £200,000 p/w more than when I first took over the club some five years ago. I know it doesn't really matter given our finacial situation, but it's still very high for a Dutch club.

[Rikulec]

Almost £2M per week under your wage budget and you're still moaning.

[tomtuck01]

Almost £2M per week under your wage budget and you're still moaning.

I always bloody well moan!

[tomtuck01]

What a wonderfully random interview offer.

[deltablue]

I wonder what will happen to your balance in the long run. I heard it 'resets' after £999,999,999 or at least used to but while I came fairly close once I've never been in a situation to know for sure.

[tomtuck01]

I wonder what will happen to your balance in the long run. I heard it 'resets' after £999,999,999 or at least used to but while I came fairly close once I've never been in a situation to know for sure.

I'll avoid that by getting the board to build a new stadium.

[john1]

Impressive transfer budget, Why are you moaning about wage budget being high

[Vanikain]

Amazing budget for a Dutch team how do you manage to keep the wages so low do you just sell before or when they ask forhigh wages?

[tomtuck01]

Impressive transfer budget, Why are you moaning about wage budget being high

I'm not moaning about the budget being high, I'm moaning because the wage expenditure is so much higher than when I first started out.

Amazing budget for a Dutch team how do you manage to keep the wages so low do you just sell before or when they ask forhigh wages?

No one gets above £25,000 p/w. If they want more and walk away when I 'lock-in" the £25,000, then I happily sell. Rarely get players getting to that stage anyway - most want to go to better leagues too early.

[tomtuck01]

Great news that the board are willing to keep up with modern technology and advance the training facilities.

[tomtuck01]

Just brilliant news for the club that our captain has signed on for four more years, with an option for a further year.

[Mauso]

Love the work with the team! The 25k pw cap seems a little strange though

And also theres no cap

Edit: Yes, sorry for not being clear I meant theres no reset when you hit 999,999,999+

[tomtuck01]

Mauso - I dont quite get it?!

[Dexter_Morgan]

I think he's saying the balance doesn't reset (could be wrong though )

Fantastic season again a shame about Juve but not a tie you were expected to win to be fair

[tomtuck01]

I think he's saying the balance doesn't reset (could be wrong though )

Fantastic season again a shame about Juve but not a tie you were expected to win to be fair

Might do at £2billion - I've heard a rumour!

And thanks. Was glad to finally win the cup!

[nfenn]

Great stuff with Ajax! Interesting concept to have a super profitable transfer policy, makes the game more of a challenge that way . Good luck for next season!

[tomtuck01]

Great stuff with Ajax! Interesting concept to have a super profitable transfer policy, makes the game more of a challenge that way . Good luck for next season!

That was the idea I guess. Although I should win domestic year after year, (as I have done with the league so far), European success is that much harder. Kind of illustrated by our one semi-final spot in the Champions League so far.

[tomtuck01]

Thomas van den Leeuwen - AFC Ajax - Preseason - 2019/20

Transfers

(Players below the red line(s) were transferred after the start of the Eredivisie season, & a further twelve young players left the club for free upon the expiration of their contracts).

In the end it was a fairly busy summer, with quite a few leaving either permanently or on loan deals and six players coming into the club. Overall we made a profit just over £50million from this summers dealings.

Young Czech forward Vaclav Cerny had a great campaign last term, but he had expressed an interest at playing in a better league and with just a year left on his contract it was best just to get rid rather than trying to persude him to stay later in the season. In the end we got a sound deal for him - initial £12million and £15million one international appearance, which he made days after the deal was confirmed! Young Brazilian Matheus Pereira was with us two years, but injuries often stopped him for getting a regular run in the side. We recouped what we paid for him however, and also got an extra £250,000 on top of that. Goalkeeper Etrit Berisha had a good three years with us but last term found himself on the fringes with emergence of Stan van Bladeren. We got more than double what we paid for him back in 2016, so I was happy enough to let him leave. A player I was fairly sad to see go was Dejan Meleg. Yes we got decent money for him, but he was a very handy player to have around due to his versatility. In the last two seasons though he made only 32 starts, so I could understand his desire to leave. Branco van den Boomen simply had to be let go for the good of his career - in his three seasons with us he made just 43 appearances. The fee we recieved was decent aswell really. Youngster Wesley Bergsma is a decent player but was never likely to progress into a first team player. Hopefully by dropping down a league he can improve and eventually prove me wrong. Centreback Damian van Bruggen featured a few times in the first team last season, but we have better young defenders than him waiting to come through - good luck to him. The final sale was that of young Czech forward Martin Mezlik. A lovely player who I was going to promote to the first team this year, but he wanted to leave as he felt he had "achieved all he could at the club". Utterly bizarre. Good riddance, and £7.7million profit after just one first team appearance in two seasons.

Four players left on loan this summer, three of which may well be part of the first team squad in the future. Aleksander Thun never kicked on in the 2nd team last term - a gamble that didn't pay off and he has no future at the club. Timothy van den Dungen, and Steven Bentohami are good young Dutch players who should be with us next season. And another young Czech player, Miroslav Simecek will get valuable Eredivisie experience at AZ Alkmaar this season. He has a big future I'm sure.

Here are the six players who joined the club this summer;

Daley Sinkgraven - £5million

He's been on my radar for somtime, but Heerenveen would never sell. He was excellent for them last year in the second division and near the end of the season we offered them a £5million non-negotiable deal which they accepted. Delighted to finally have him.

Fagrie Lakay - £400,000

A solid player who cost next to nothing in truth. Like with many players I have he offers alot versatility, so will be very useful to have in the squad.

Marcus Bengtsson - £950,000

A young striker found by Director of Football Marc Overmars. Worth a punt for the low fee, and has some decent attributes to work with going forward.

Sékou Coulibaly - £1.1million

An excellent young prospect found by my scouts this summer at the under-20 World Cup. He's nearly 18, and has so much time to develop into a quality player. His progress is going to be exciting to see.

Nathan Josephs - £550,000

We have alot of work to do with this young central defender, but he has some decent basic attributes. If nothing else we've helped out our affiliate club in South Africa and should make our money back on him when we come to sell in the future.

Solomon Nzimande - £500,000

Much like the other youngster from Ajax CT, this young goalkeeper needs alot of work, but at 18 he has time on his side to improve vastly.

Just like with the last three seasons, there is one other bit of transfer news that is not on the transfers section, and that is loan renewal of Timothy Fosu-Mensah. After signing a new deal at Untied we're having to pay him more each week - £23,000 - however his loan fee this term was lower than last; £150,000 per month.

Preseason Friendlies

Just a short tour of China this summer, with us facing one side twice at the beginning and end of the tour. We drew our first game with Jeonbuk, but following victories against Ulsan and Pohang, the tour finished with us defeating Jeonbuk 3-0 in our second encounter. Solid if relatively unspectacular preseason.

Johan Cruijff Schaal

A solid win against our biggest historical rivals to see us win another Johan Cruijff Schaal.

An early goal from Alexandre Pato got us off to a great start, and gave us a platform to dominate from. We did just that, limiting the space Feyenoord had to play in and hitting them time and again on the counter attack. Our second goal arrived on the hour, and it was actually from a setpiece rather than a counter attack. Anwar El Ghazi had a freekick saved, and defender Timothy Fosu-Mensah fired home the rebound. 2-0 the final score - a nice comfortable win.

The season kicks off soon, with SC Cambuur at home in the Amsterdam Arena.

[john1]

Sékou Coulibaly, looks class

[tomtuck01]

Sékou Coulibaly, looks class

Quite agree, a terrific find by my scouts.

[tomtuck01]

Thomas van den Leeuwen - AFC Ajax - August 2019

Eredivisie

A good start to the season, but PSV have started just aswell and are top on goal difference.

We started the season off in fine style, thrashing Cambuur 4-0 on the opening dad of the campaign. Alexandre Pato picked up where he left off last season, smashing home a hattrick in the first half. Late in the second period we added a fourth through substitute Gabriel Fernando thumping in from long range. Another hattrick followed in our next game, this time for Ezra Walian, as we won 3-1 away at Vitesse Arnhem. In the twelfth minute we were infront thanks to a cracking Walian header. Vitesse hit back from the penalty spot four minutes later, but we retook the lead soon after, Walian rounding the goalkeeper and slotting home. Eight minutes into the second period Walian completed his hattrick, thumping home from just outside the box. The same man hit a first half double in our next fixture to defeat NEC Nijmegen. His first was a cool finish from a cute Fagrie Lakay pass. The game was wrapped up eleven minutes before the break, with Walian tapping in fullback Teun van Zweeden pullback. A trip to Utrecht followed and we just about got all three points. Damon Mirani headed home after just three minutes, but Utrecht equalised just seven minutes later, and heading into halftime we were all square. Twelve minutes into the second half Alexandre Pato put us back ahead, curling home into the bottom corner. With just ten minutes remaining though Utrecht equalised, capitalising on our failure to wrap the game up. We did grab a winner though, Alexandre Pato getting his second six minutes from time, scrambling home from close range. The month was rounded off with a 2-0 win at home to VVV-Venlo, but we had to work for it. In the 73rd minute we got th breakthrough, hitting VVV-Venlo with a devastating counter. Nikolai Laursen got in down the left handside and pulled back for Queeny Menig who finished into the bottom corner. Nine minutes from time we sealed the win, captain Donny van de Beek slamming home from the edge of the box.

Wonderful start, but PSV seem up to challenging us at this early stage. After the international break we travel to Roda JC.

[john1]

No surprise to see Pato, banging goals in already Great start as always

[tomtuck01]

No surprise to see Pato, banging goals in already Great start as always

He's Alex Pato, he scores when he wants.

[tomtuck01]

Champions League Group Stage Draw - 2019/20

A tough, tough draw with us again drawing Atletico Madrid, but also getting Internazionale who were amongst the third seeds. Crvezna Zvevda, (or Red Star Belgrade to us normal people), won't be easy either, especially away from home. I'd still expect us to qualify for the next round though.

[Lenzar]

I see you've the same annoying LNC which 'fixes' names like Red Star. Took me a long time to work out who they were supposed to be.

[Bilbo Baggins]

Tricky group, should navigate it though.

[Rikulec]

I see you've the same annoying LNC which 'fixes' names like Red Star. Took me a long time to work out who they were supposed to be.

Crvena Zvezda is the actual team name though.

[tomtuck01]

Tricky group, should navigate it though.

Oh certainly - I'd be disappointed if we didn't.

I see you've the same annoying LNC which 'fixes' names like Red Star. Took me a long time to work out who they were supposed to be.

Crvena Zvezda is the actual team name though.

I don't mind the name change.....just wanted to clarify it as someone wouldn't know.

[john1]

Pretty tough group but You can definitely finish in top 2.

[tomtuck01]

Pretty tough group but You can definitely finish in top 2.

I'd expect us to do so in all honesty. We've shown before we can get results against both Atletico and Inter.

[tomtuck01]

Thomas van den Leeuwen - AFC Ajax - November & December 2019

Eredivisie

November

A good points return considering all three fixtures were away from home.

The month began with a visit to AZ Alkmaar, and we weren't at our best but came away with all three points. Twice we fell behind in the first half, with an Anwar El Ghazi goal coming inbetween AZ's two strikes. It took until fourteen minutes from time for us to equalise through El Ghazi again, before Nikolai Laursen won it for us with six minutes remaining, tapping home Alexandre Pato's low cross. NAC Breda were our next away day, and we secured a comfortable enough 2-0 win. Alexandre Pato put us infront five minutes before the break, and with just eight minutes to go Ezra Walian tucked home a penalty to seal all three points. We finished off the month with a draw at Groningen. Alexandre Pato put us infront in the twenty-second minute firing home from twenty yards out. Groningen though levelled in the first minute of the second period, and ultimately a draw was a fair result.

December

A pretty poor month truth be told, with just eight points from four games.

After the draw at the end of November, we got back to winning ways with a solid 2-0 win at home to ADO Den Haag. Ezra Walian headed home in the opening twenty minutes, and three minutes before halftime Nikolai Laursen squeezed home a Walian cutback to double our lead, and ultimately secure the win. PSV then came to Amsterdam for De Topper Derby, and we didn't disappoint. Afetr a cagey opening half-an-hour or so, Alexandre Pato slotted home in the 35th minute to give us the lead. However, PSV levelled before halftime. A little over twenty minutes into the second period, Queensy Menig was brought down in the penalty area and Pato put us back infront from the penalty spot. Late in the day we rounded off the win, catching PSV on the break as they sought an equaliser to allow Anwar El Ghazi to calmly finish. A trip to Go Ahead eagles followed, and we played out a real ding-diong draw. The game was end-to-end throughout, with both teams having chances. Defences and goalkeepers won out though, and 0-0 was the final score. De Klassieker rounded off the month and the year, and we battled from behind to take a point. Feyenoord were ahead before halftime, and on the hour they doubled their lead. Queensy Menig turned home Pato's cross with fifteen minutes to go, and then with four minutes to go Pato levelled things up, rocketing home a stunning volley with his left foot.

We may be top, but PSV aren't going anywhere without a fight just yet.

KNVB-Beker - 4th Round

December

A poor performance, even if we got the win to take us into the next round.

Willem II went infront from the penalty spot after just four minutes. But we soon hit back, Ezra Walian sweeping home John van der Meer's pass. It was level at the break, but two goals in the opening eight minutes of the second period helped us on our way. Nicklas Røjkjær scored from close range after a lovely little exchange with Alper Ademoglu to make it 2-1, and it was Ademoglu who made it three just a few minutes later, with Røjkjær this time providing the assist. Willem got a second a few minutes from time, but we held on to the win despite some late pressure.

Not convincing, but good enough. In the quarter finals we face Utrecht at home.

Champions League - Group Stage

November

One win and one defeat, and our place in the next round is secure.

We didn't play well away at Red Star Belgrade (Crvena Zvezda), but we got the win after coming from behind. In just the fourth minute we trailed, and it stayed that way until the 72nd minute when Alexandre Pato headed home from a corner. With just three minutes to go we grabbed the winner, with Alper Ademoglu crashing home from outside the area. Another away game followed at Internazionale, and we went down by one goal to nil. It was a fairly even game with few decent chances created, and in the end the winner came from the penalty spot nineteen minutes from time following a foul from Teun van Zweeden. 1-0 to Inter - not a good result, but an even worse game overall.

December

Not a great performance as we snatched a draw deep into stoppage time, but we had already won the group so it didn't matter. Atletico went ahead just after halftime, but talisman Alexandre Pato levelled very late in the day, tapping home after a goalkeeping blunder.

In the first knockout round we face Chelsea, with the first leg away from home.

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Thomas van den Leeuwen - AFC Ajax - January 2020

Eredivisie

Three good wins, but PSV just won't leave us alone!

We travelled Cambuur on New Years Day, a game in hand from earlier in the season, and we eventually saw them off comfortably. It took us just over an hour to breakthrough, Alexandre Pato tucking home Queensy Menig's low pass. Pato then secured all three points for us six minutes from time, heading home a cross from leftback Mitchell Dijks. Three weeks later the league resumed after the winter break, and Vitesse Arnhem came to town. After just fourteen minutes we were two goals to the good, Mitchell Dijks getting his first ever Eredivisie goal, and Queensy Menig curling home from the edge of the area. Vitesse got a goal back just after the hour, but Alexandre Pato calmed the nerves four minutes from time, slamming home Donny van de Beek's low pass. The month concluded with a trip to NEC Nijmegen. Ezra Walian, an early substitute for Alexandre Pato, struck both our goals in the opening twenty minutes of the second half to give a solid 2-0 win.

We kick February off with an away game at VVV-Venlo.

KNVB-Beker - Quarter Final

Well, this was a rather awful display.

We didn't quite have a full strength side out, but it still should have been enough to see off Utrecht, and to fail to do so was infuriating. We fell behind in first half stoppage time, but in the opening minutes of the second period we equalised via Nicklas Røjkjær. However, Utrecht dug in and saw off a decent spell of domination from us, our only real spell of the game, and went back infront on the hour. Truth be told we didn't deserve anything more than we got here, and Utrecht comfortably saw the game out.

Transfers

There was a few transfer deals this January window, with three players joining the club and also three leaving. All of those joining were on permanent deals, and of the three leaving two were on permanent deals and one heading out on loan.

Players Out

John van der Meer wanted, and needs, more football than we can give him right now. Hopefully NAC give him the game time he requires to aid his development - they have said he will be an important first team player, so here's hoping! A big transfer out was that of Nicolas Gutierrez. The screenshot shows we recieved just £4million from Napoli for his services, but another £14million will come our way after a few international appearances, so the deal will overall be worth £18million. Pity, as I wanted him here, but he was moaning about first team football. The other player to leave was Robert Muric. He had been with the club since he was 18, and although he did OK when called upon, he didn't quite develop as much as I had hoped. With his contract soon expiring we did remarkably well to recieve £3.4million for him.

Players In

Ahmed Samir - £150,000

A very modest fee for a raw talent from Egypt. He's only just turned eighteen and already looks decent. A few years of development and we could have a seriously good player on our hands.

Radim Müller - £4million

A fairly large fee for a good young goalkeeper from Viktoria Plzeň in the Czech Republic. He has plenty of developing to go yet, but already has all the raw materials in place to be an excellent goalkeeper in the future.

Ahmend Kamel - £825,000

Another young Egyptian, this time joining from Danish football. He has some great attribues, and with a little work could be a terrific player. A cracker really for the small fee we payed for him.

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Thomas van den Leeuwen - AFC Ajax - February 2020

Eredivisie

Six wins of out six and no goals conceded. What a stonking month!

A comfortable win at VVV-Venlo kicked off the month, and in all honesty it was game over after just ninteen minutes as we raced into a two goal lead. Queensy Menig slotted us infront after just three minutes, and in the 19th minute Nikolai Laursen curled home a freekick to double our lead. We wrapped things up eighteen minutes from time thanks to Alexandre Pato thunderbolt. 3-0, easy. Another 3-0 win followed, this time at home to Utrecht. Pato put us ahead in first half stoppage time, and early in the second period Anwar El Ghazi doubled our advantage. Pato scored his second of the night fifteen minutes from time secure a sound win. Roda JC came to Amsterdam next, and again we triumphed by three goals to nil. Ezra Walian headed us infront after just six minutes, and a splendid long range effort from Queensy Menig in the 27th minute made it 2-0. Four minutes into the second half Nikolai Laursen crashed home from just inside the box the secured another comfortable 3-0 win. A third home game in a row followed when Twente came to town. A penalty on the stroke of halftime from Alexnadre Pato put us ahead, and early in the second half an own goal following a Daley Sinkgraven cross made it 2-0, and thereafter we saw out the game with little fuss. 2-0, and rarely troubled. A trip to face Den Bosch followed, and we destroyed them 4-0. Pato put us one up after just five minutes, and in the tenth minute he doubled our lead from the penalty spot. With twenty minutes to go he completed his hattrick, tapping home after the goalkeeper had fumbled a corner. Young Brazilian Gabriel Fernando rounded off the win fourteen minutes from time, heading home Anwar El Ghazi's cross. The month was rounded off with a trip to Heerenveen, and we defeated them comfortably by two goals to nil. Daley Sinkgraven scored his first goal for Ajax against his former club, firing home a freekick after just four minutes, and then just before the hour we ssecured all three points when captain Donny van de Beek converted from the spot after Sinkgraven had been fouled.

After PSV faultered a couple of times we now sit ten points clear with eight games to play. Feyenoord come to Amsterdam next.

Champions League - 1st Knockout Round, 1st Leg

Well this was much better than it ought to have been - Chelsea gave us a right battering.

We held out, if you want to call it that, until just the 22nd minute when Diego Costa headed home from a corner. The same man doubled Chelsea's lead six minutes before the break. In the second half we had a couple of chances, but Chelsea controlled things really and held us at arms length, comfortably winning the game 2-0.

All to do in the second leg.

[tomtuck01]

All hail The Duck!