Stan James on Ajax v Arsenal

Stan James Prices
Ajax……….6/4
Draw…..…11/5
Arsenal…….8/5

This could be a tough assignment for the Gunners. An indifferent start to the season on the domestic front coupled with a spluttering victory against FC Thun in their first Champions League tie a fortnight ago means that the pressure is on to get things back on track.

The problem for them is that they are heading to Amsterdam without several key players. Firstly Thierry Henry will not be playing, along with Van Persie, Jan Lehman and Gilberto Silva. It also looks extremely doubtful that Bergkamp will feature as well. As big as their squad is, the loss of these players is bound to have an effect. They will probably play Reyes up front and then have to rely on the likes of Fabregas and Flamini in midfield to have big games. The 9/2 on Fabregas scoring at anytime in the match does look tempting. They will also be praying that Robert Pires is fit enough to start because he’ll add a bit of experience.

But on the positive side, Arsenal have had the breaks so far though in the Group. The late winner from Dennis Bergkamp was manna from heaven and then Ajax got a late equaliser against Sparta Prague to share the points, a result which must have pleased Wenger. With Sparta in crisis and FC Thun realistically making up the numbers, they will look at this game as chance to stamp their authority on the Group. They know that a win here would almost seal their passage to the next phase. But they would also be reasonably happy with a point. One note of caution is that Arsenal’s away form lately has been dire in Europe. They have not won away in their last five matches on the Continent. 

Ajax have not exactly been tearing up the Dutch League. They currently lie in 5th having picked up just 10 points from the first six matches. So their form is probably the same as Arsenal. They did have a convincing 4-1 victory over JC Roda on the weekend though so this should have given them a lift. They home record against English clubs is pretty good as well. Of the eight matches they have won five, drawn two and lost just one. There is no doubt that the atmosphere in the Amsterdan ArenA will help their cause and teams do find it an intimidating place to go.

On the balance of it then, the game is tricky to call, but you suspect that there could be plenty of goalmouth action. It’s a game that both sides want to win. Ajax will not be on the back foot. Anything but a home win for them will seem like a disaster.