Europa League Final: Ajax's Youth or the Devil's Coldness?
(Baonghean.vn) -"Young, Rojo, or Zlatan, even if they have to wear crutches, the whole team will go to Stockholm" - Coach Jose Mourinho emphasized.
It seems that the Europa League is not only the title that the Red Devils are lacking in their trophy room, but also the only door left for coach Mourinho and his team to find a ticket to play in the Champions League next season. Therefore, coach Jose Mourinho revealed to the press that all injured MU players, even those on crutches, will be present at the Friends Arena in Stockholm (Sweden).
Saying that shows the importance and team spirit of MU players, they are determined to play a "life and death match" in Stockholm. The Daily Star even revealed that the legendary coach at Old Trafford took the trouble to meet MU's board of directors to convince them not to fire Mourinho under any circumstances. Sir Alex's voice is an extremely weighty guarantee for Mourinho to comfortably "unleash" his full strength when facing Ajax.
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Professional corner
Due to the early end of the Dutch national championship, Ajax Amsterdam had nearly 2 weeks off before the Europa League final to prepare physically and tactically. Without hiding anything, coach Peter Bosz (Ajax) affirmed: “Ajax will play in the traditional style. We will increase the speed of the match, create pressure, and press strongly. We want to dominate the final match.”
On the MU side, Mourinho has proactively "let go" of the Top 4 target in the Premier League, accepting early 6th place overall. Observing MU's training sessions in preparation for this match, experts believe that Mourinho will use a 4-2-3-1 tactical formation. Of which, the 11 players on the starting lineup will include Romero, Valencia, Smalling, Blind, Darmian, Pogba, Herrera, Lingard, Mkhitaryan, Martial, Rashford.
Goalkeeper Sergio Romero, who has been superb in the last few Premier League games, will be in goal. In the absence of centre-back Eric Bailly, who is still suspended for the Celta Vigo game, Smalling and Daley Blind will partner him at centre-back.
Valencia and Matteo Darmian will of course take up the wing positions. Ander Herrera, United's player of the year, will continue to occupy the midfield position alongside Pogba, meaning Maroune Fellaini will only be a reserve option.
In attack, Rashford will play in the highest position, with Mkhitaryan and Martial on the wings providing effective support for the 19-year-old striker. In addition, young midfielder Lingard will also return to the starting lineup as an attacking midfielder.
It can be said that Jose Mourinho has prepared all the most important things for this final. He has given MU's key players a chance to rest. Pogba and Lingard played 45 minutes in the final Premier League match against Crystal Palace to warm up. Pogba's performance after his family incident will be an important factor in MU's playing style in the final match against Ajax.
In the match against Crystal Palace, this midfielder put his pain aside, scored 1 goal and 1 assist and was also in the typical lineup of the round. Coach Jose Mourinho still has other reserve players such as: David De Gea, Phil Jones, Michael Carrick, Timothy Fosu-Mensah, Juan Mata, Fellaini, Wayne Rooney.
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Key to the match
The Stockholm scenario is that Mou-United have two options: Actively play deep, wait for opportunities or attack from the start. Ajax this season often plays with a 4-3-3 formation, high intensity pressing, rushing attacks, deploying the ball from the bottom up, using the 2-second rule (must win the ball back within 2 seconds after losing the ball). People will see at Friends Arena midfielders Davy Klaassen, Hakim Ziyech, Kasper Dolberg explode in the center, wing stars Amin Younes (Justin Kluivert), Bertrand Traore use their youth and speed to defeat opponents.
Manchester United have two weaknesses: finishing ability, the lack of the most solid players in the defense. The English team is missing the toughest and most pressure-resistant defensive stars, Eric Bailly and Marcos Rojo. But the characteristic of Jose Mourinho's ruthless pragmatism is still intact. With just a few passes, Man United can make Ajax regret.
The key question is which side takes advantage of the opportunity to score first will have a decisive meaning in the match. The youth of Ajax players or the coldness of the "Red Devils"?
An Thanh
