Amsterdam Trip-Ajax Showcase Game

The second semester of my first year in Leeds is well under way and I can’t wait for the new adventures and experiences to come in the near future. I got back to Leeds January 12^th and was supposed to play in the game the 14^th but the field was literally frozen. The mud was covered in ice and the game was called off because of the dangerous surface of the pitch. My semester started off with a bang as me and 18 other teammates traveled to Amsterdam, Netherlands, to play a friendly match against the Ajax u-19 youth academy. Ajax is known for having one of the, if not the best youth academy set up in the world, so it was a great honor and experience all together both culturally and football wise to be apart of this trip. We arrived in Amsterdam on the night of the 16^th traveled to downtown Amsterdam to our hostel, played Ajax the 17^th, and left the evening of the 18^th. Although the trip was short and sweet, I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Amsterdam. The scenery, “coffee shops”, canals, and icing waffles, left a vivid memories and impressions of this fabulous capital city. On the 16^th after our arrival, the team ate out at a restaraunt and some of us explored Amsterdam for part of the night, just to experience the city. The next day was match day as we had a late afternoon kick off. All the players were a bit nervous, but more excited to be playing against and at Ajax youth academy training facilities. As we pulled into the grounds, the complex and the professionalism of the facilities stunned us all.

Below are some pictures from the game and facilities:

Ajax played their typical and famous system of a 4-3-3, so we decided to match their formation as well in order to cope with their free flowing attack. The game began and Ajax dominated the first 15 minutes. Although no fabulous goal scoring chances occurred, Ajax dominated possession, as most players were caught in the moment rather than in the game. As we settled down and started to play the game unfolded. From the beginning we understood to even compete with these guys we would have to stay compact and disciplined on defense, and take our chances off of the counter attack. Their attacking movement, ability to keep possession, and calmness, was phenomenal, as we had to sustain attack, after attack from Ajax. Ajax had great build up play, but their downfall was their shooting and final pass. However, their first goal came off of intricate passing, off of a counter- attack, and their striker scored on a 1 v 1 with our keeper. Minutes later we tied the game after our striker was released into the left hand side of the box but in, and bent a ball back post. Going into half time we were happy to still be in the game with a tie, and we knew if we kept the Ajax players in front of us, and took our chances on the counter, we had a possibility of taking this match. The second half started better for us, as we were focused and sticking to our game plan. Ajax still had most of the possession and was attacking freely but once in our final third, they became frustrated, lacked creativity, and found it difficult to break us down and obtain quality chances. Most of their shots were from distance and failed to test our keeper. We had a few chances off of the counter but our final shots were off target. Finally our break came with 20 minutes left in the game. After possession transitioned to us and we started a counter and the Ajax back four were down to three as one player was out of position. Our striker took the opportunity, by making a run between the back three, and was released onto goal, finishing on the 1 v 1. For the last 20 minutes we put up a bunker of players in front of our goal and continued to frustrate the Ajax team as they saw time slip away and were pressured to produce another goal. Thankfully time ran out and we came away with a 2-1 victory! Running for 90 minutes against the Ajax team had me knackered and I was stocked to have played against a fantastic team, beat them, and could not believe the moment. It is something only a few people can say they played against Ajax youth academy and won and we were all excited for the night out in Amsterdam.  The night was long lived with a visit to the red light district, eating icing waffles, and endless exploration of the city. After a late night, we left Amsterdam around 5:00 pm, and returned to our home in Leeds. Overall the trip was amazing and I was so happy to be apart of something so special. Hopefully we continue to obtain positive result in our showcase games.  The rest of the week included resting, recovering, and meeting up with other players returning to the academy in Leeds.  School and training starts back up on Monday, January 23^rd and I am stocked to see what the rest of this semester holds!