UEFA Europa League Performance Insights: How ten-man Ajax held on against Union SG
Tuesday, February 25, 2025
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UEFA Technical Observer Rui Faria analyses the quality of Ajax's defending when down to ten men in their thrilling UEFA Europa League knockout phase play-off decider at home to Union SG.
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Union SG surged into a 2-0 lead after 28 minutes to level the tie in the second leg of their UEFA Europa League knockout phase play-off against Ajax, and previous analysis showed how they did this.
We can now look at more individual aspects to see what made Ajax's defending with ten men so effective, the Dutch side having lost Davy Klaassen to a 25th-minute red card before prevailing 3-2 on aggregate in extra time.
In the first video, we see Ajax defending in a 5-3-1 formation. The Dutch side try to stay organised and protect spaces in the middle channel, with the two central midfielders close to the three centre-backs. Ajax move across as a unit and, when the ball is on their left side, the central midfield fill the gaps after the wide players go to press.
Defending wide areas well limits opportunities for crosses, forcing Union to change the point of attack, yet Ajax shuffle across well to do the same again. There's a collective organisation in supporting each other, tracking runs and covering half-spaces; individual qualities are also paramount.
"The individual qualities needed to succeed defensively start with focus and commitment," stresses UEFA Technical Observer Rui Faria. "There should be a tactical awareness of knowing the strategic objectives of the team and also the ability to adjust, given the unpredictability of the game. And you can apply qualities like communication and leadership, which would help any player.
"Individually, speed of thought and agility in decisions to anticipate opposition movements give an advantage. And, when recovering the ball, a player needs quick and accurate decisions to be successful in ball possession."
In the second video, we see that after defending in the wide area and forcing Union to switch, Ajax recover well, with the centre-forward and midfielder recovering on the diagonal to move across as well as protecting against penetrative passes. When there's a one vs one in wide areas, Ajax offer cover from midfielders to stop crosses.
"It's important to spend time in training to practise defending crosses," says Faria. "Individual practice is important, but you practise as a team and play as a team. And in preparation, you define a strategy – and that is both defensive and offensive.
"You should also have information about your opponents and, if you know them and their qualities, you start by trying to avoid crosses in a first phase. Then work on the best spaces to occupy in the box to deal with crosses if they happen."
In the third video, Union were able to break into the penalty box, but Ajax defended the cross well – as they did throughout. The Ajax players made body contact on the forwards closest to goal, giving some control. They also screened off the cutback opportunity, thus protecting the central areas of the pitch.
"To defend the box, you need to be compact as a team block, occupying accurate positions always in relation to distances to team-mates, managing space and time collectively," says Faria.
The graphic above shows the number of crosses Ajax had to deal with from open play. It was a siege on their goal, but from 35 crosses Ajax managed to get first contact on the ball 24 times. Goalkeeper Remko Pasveer was effective, as were centre-backs Josip Šutalo and Daniele Rugani, and the trio were first to 13 of these crosses. Šutalo also made four interceptions and had the most clearances (9). Ahmetcan Kaplan, who replaced Rugani at half-time, made six clearances.
In the opening 30 minutes, Ajax conceded an xG (Expected goals) of 1.5. With ten players for the 90 minutes that followed, they conceded an xG of 1.9, showing a fine attitude and resilience from their players, who ultimately triumphed.
A final comment from Rui Faria, offering a message to youth coaches regarding individual player development: "The idea of attacking football has shaped training and coaching positively, educating players to have a proactive game culture. However, in my opinion, many teams struggle now when they are without the ball, both individually and collectively.
"If we focus just on the ability to press high, we fail to provide every concept necessary to be efficient in defence. I hope coaches won't be condemned as defensive just because they seek to improve their team's defensive skills in training. After all, the game still has two principal facets: attack and defence."
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