Ajax wins at Tottenham; Vietnam qualifies for U19 women's Asian Cup thanks to fair-play
(Baonghean.vn) - Donny van de Beek scored, helping the Dutch team win 1-0 in the first leg of the Champions League semi-finals on the evening of April 30; Coach Mai Duc Chung and his team ranked second in Group B, one fair-play point ahead of Iran, are notable news.
Ajax won right on Tottenham's field
Tottenham's lack of players limited their attacking options. Despite their experienced defense against Ajax's unpredictable attacking style, the English team had to rely on luck to avoid a bigger defeat.
The only goal of the match came early in the first half, when Van de Beek escaped the offside trap and beat Hugo Lloris in a one-on-one. Van de Beek is a dangerous and unpredictable explosive player for Ajax. In the second leg of the quarter-finals against Juventus, the midfielder born in 1997 equalized 1-1 for Ajax with a surprise penetration into the penalty area.
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Llorente tried hard but he was almost harmless to the Ajax defense. Photo:Reuters. |
Without Harry Kane due to injury and Son Heung-min suspended, Pochettino had to use Fernando Llorente as a centre-forward. The Spanish striker showed good spirit but the slowness of an aging player made him easy to block by Ajax defenders. Tottenham found it difficult to escape the opponent's high pressing style with a striker like Llorente who did not know how to keep the ball and operate independently.
Ajax showed early why they eliminated Real Madrid and Juventus en route to the quarter-finals. Dominating possession, Erik ten Hag's men forced Tottenham to defend throughout the first half. Van de Beek's goal came in a situation where the home side's midfield did not provide the necessary cover, giving Hakim Ziyech plenty of time and space to make an assist.
Van de Beek had a chance to score twice a few minutes later but couldn't beat Lloris in a close-range encounter. Had the 22-year-old been more observant and passed to David Neres, Ajax could have had a second.
Tottenham started to have their first chances towards the end of the first half, mainly from set pieces. Llorente headed wide of the post after being unmarked. But the hosts were left out of action in a free-kick when Jan Vertonghen collided with team-mate Toby Alderweireld and had to leave the field with concussion.
Pochettino had to switch Tottenham from a back three to a back four after replacing Vertonghen. But the change seemed to help the home side control Ajax’s flanks and see more of the ball in the second half. However, their formation was not cohesive enough to be dangerous.
High balls are still Tottenham's most used weapon. However, right-back Kieran Trippier, Tottenham's specialist in free-kicks and crosses, had a poor game. This was partly the reason why Pochettino's team could not make the most of their chances. Christian Eriksen had little space to create and often misplaced his passes under pressure from opponents.
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Tottenham did not have enough attacking options to break down Ajax's defense. Photo:Guardian. |
Lucas Moura was a rare bright spot with his technical and speedy handling, causing veteran Daley Blind many difficulties. But the Brazilian often had to deal with the siege of two or three Ajax players. That helpless image represented the face of Tottenham in this match. Having had a lot of possession in the second half, the home team's clearest chances came from dead balls. Those were two headers that went over the bar by Alderweireld.
Unable to maintain the initiative, Ajax still made their opponents nervous with their well-coordinated attacks. In a situation where the ball was brought in from the right wing, Dusan Tadic showed his keen observation when his pass put Neres in a position to face the goalkeeper. However, the Ajax striker's left-footed shot hit the post when Lloris was rooted to the spot.
This is the first time in the knockout stages of the Champions League this year that Ajax have won the first leg. The Dutch team showed that they are not inferior to their opponents. However, Tottenham will certainly be very different in the second leg when Son Heung-min returns. The English team showed some courage in this match when they accepted to play humbly at home against an opponent who is in very good spirits. After the match, Pochettino said that losing 0-1 is not a disaster and that the English team can create a comeback in the Netherlands in the second leg on May 8.
Vietnam qualified for the U19 Women's Asian Cup thanks to fair-play index
In the final match of the group stage on the evening of April 30 at the VFF Youth Football Training Center (Hanoi), Vietnam needed at least one point to advance. Coach Mai Duc Chung's team played hard, but still lost 1-2 to South Korea. The away team opened the score in the 40th minute, but Nguyen Thi Tuyet Ngan unexpectedly equalized in the 71st minute. The home team tried to preserve the score, but still lost another goal in the 80th minute.
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| Captain Nguyen Thi Tuyet Ngan and her teammates squeezed through the narrow door on April 30. Tuyet Ngan finished the two qualifying rounds with 10 goals - becoming the top scorer. Photo: VFF. |
The result left Vietnam and Iran with four points each, having scored six goals and conceded four. The two teams drew when they met, leaving the ticket to the next round to be decided by the number of penalty cards.
Iran's fair-play score is -4, with four yellow cards. They received one card in the second match against South Korea, and three in the final match against Lebanon. Meanwhile, Vietnam had one red card (two yellow cards) from midfielder Tran Thi Hai Linh in the opening match, which ended in a 1-1 draw with Iran. Vietnam's fair-play score is -3, one more than Iran.
Tuyet Ngan and her teammates did not know whether they would continue or not when the final whistle blew. It was more than 15 minutes after the match that they received news from the organizers and began to celebrate in the locker room.
This is the fifth time Vietnam has participated in the AFC U19 Women's Championship finals, after 2006, 2009, 2011 and 2017. The 2019 finals took place from October 27 to November 9 in Thailand, with eight teams. Vietnam has never reached the semi-finals of the tournament.
The Asian U19 Women's Qualifiers are divided into two rounds. In the first round, Vietnam also hosted and won all three matches against Jordan, Malaysia and Singapore. In the second round, which took place from April 26 to April 30, Vietnam drew with Iran, beat Lebanon 4-1 and then lost to South Korea. The result helped South Korea advance with all three matches, while Vietnam finished second. This is not the first time a Vietnamese football team has advanced thanks to the fair-play index. At the 2019 Asian Cup, Coach Park Hang-seo and his team also advanced through the group stage thanks to a better index than Lebanon.
Tottenham condemned for mistreating Vertonghen
According to UEFA regulations, a player with a head injury should not continue playing but Tottenham did not comply with the case of Jan Vertonghen.
In the first half of the first leg of the Champions League semi-final against Ajax, centre-back Vertonghen had a strong collision with his teammate Toby Alderweireld in the opponent's penalty area. Both fell down in pain and needed help from the medical team. However, Vertonghen's situation was more serious when he suffered many cuts to his nose and head, causing blood to flow down his face. Tottenham's medical team was extremely worried after 4 minutes of treating Vertonghen on the sidelines. But in the end, Vertonghen was given a new shirt and allowed to continue playing.
Vertonghen suffered a severe concussion...
UEFA regulations this season state that a player with a head injury that could be considered serious concussion can only be allowed to continue playing if the team doctor has assured the referee. Dr Christopher Hughes confirmed to referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz that Vertonghen was fit to play again in the 38th minute.
...but Tottenham doctors still let him continue playing.
But Vertonghen only lasted... 40 seconds on the pitch before walking to the touchline, shaking his head and pulling his shirt over his face in frustration. He could not even stand and needed help from coach Mauricio Pochettino before being taken to the tunnel by medical staff. Former player Gary Lineker confirmed that Vertonghen's health has improved after being treated in the dressing room.
However, Lineker's comments did not help Tottenham's medical team avoid a wave of fierce criticism. Many people believed that their conclusions could push Vertonghen's health to the worst possible level. Previously in 2013, Tottenham was also condemned similarly when they continued to play Hugo Lloris after a strong collision with Romelu Lukaku.
