Dutch legend comes to harsh conclusion after Inter defeat: “Ajax can’t compete at this level” | OneFootball

Ajax lost 2-0 to Inter on Wednesday evening, and after the match, analysts Wesley Sneijder and Theo Janssen were quick to draw some harsh conclusions. The approach from John Heitinga’s team on corners left the duo baffled.

Inter popped the Ajacieden’s returning Champions League bubble, as Marcus Thuram scored twice. Notching on either side of the interval, he guided home a header at each end of the pitch as corners seemed to be the order of the day. Sneijder was surprised that Ajax didn’t learn from the first goal.

“It’s another well-taken corner,” Sneijder analysed Marcus Thuram’s second goal on Ziggo Sport. “He heads it in very simply. Yes, those are set-pieces. You have to train for those, too. You have to put the right players together there. Then you’d think – if Thuram had scored the first – that you’d convert something. I thought that was quite remarkable.”

Janssen added that Ajax probably thought Davy Klaassen, who was supposed to provide man-to-man marking for Thuram, was the man for the job. “There must be a reason. But Thuram is so powerful. Klaassen doesn’t even get a chance to jump. He’s just a really good striker.”

In the end, Ajax only had one real chance, and it became just before Thuram’s first goal as Mika Godts missed a one-on-one opportunity in the 40th minute. “Yeah, that would be a different game,” Sneijder lamented. “But if you don’t create these kinds of shots – and they haven’t created anything since – the conclusion is stark: Ajax can’t compete at this level. And Inter weren’t even at their best.”

Finally, Sneijder had a message for the Amsterdam side. “It’s now important for them to flip the switch. They knew beforehand that Inter were perhaps a size too big, and that’s proven to be the case. But don’t let that get to you; you have to do it again on Sunday. It’s a long season with a lot of matches. They have to flip the switch very quickly.” This coming Sunday, they face reigning champions PSV at the Philips Stadion in Eindhoven.

GBeNeFN | Max Bradfield