Off to Amsterdam today for the first of three games in seven days. To the Future. The saying goes: he who has the youth has the future. But Ajax has the Future. And last week I wrote that success comes when you believe in the things you do.
Today this is coming true. We start well and everything goes according to plan. After four minutes a nice ball from Dani to Philippe is the cause of our lead. 0-1. We want to build on this success. After ten minutes an Ajax action is enough and the score is tied again. But still we get chances in the first half. We can, maybe should, turn the score back in our favor but we don't do it. And then in the last minute before halftime we get down after an action by our opponent and the score is 2 - 1 for Ajax. Rest
It's quiet in the locker room. Well rest. Not really. The coach says what's up. So we go out again to pick up the thread. And we pick up the thread. Within two minutes the ball is back in our net. That was the thread from just before halftime, and so trainer didn't mean that thread.
There it is again: success comes when you believe. Today we believe nothing. Balls are not arriving, passes are not good, we only walk backwards, do not talk to each other, do not coach. You name it. And today Ajax was up for grabs. They don't play great either but we can't impress. Ten minutes before time there is a small revival through Ryan who with an impactful ball brings the score to 3 - 2 and then you would believe........ but nothing of it. We still don't believe it. And within three minutes the difference is two again. An oversight at the back and the number four can run the ball right in.
A deserved (based on our play) defeat and so the gap with the top of the champions' pool becomes very big. Wednesday AZ visits us and Saturday Feyenoord. We can still make up for it and six points would mean another improvement in the league table. So men: BELIEVE. BELIEVE in the things you do and success will come.
Good luck next week.
LOSING AND YET NEVER GIVING UP THAT IS ONLY A VICTORY.
Bye.


van Osch, Abels, Verstraaten, Weymans, Groenendijk (73rd Peijnenburg), Rommens (69th Groeneveld), Hiwat, Lammers (50th Berden), van der Moot, Paal, Lundqvist (57th Naciri).