Pre-Season and Friendly Games

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-- Anonymous, February 07, 2002

Answers

Always good to see that Nikos still has bullets in the clip.Well,i never doubted that anyway.... ;-)

-- Anonymous, October 19, 2002

I think we can officially add this one to our agenda...

Al-Ahly vs Ajax, to be played in Caïro, Egypt, on Friday, 24 January 2003.

It is announced in this report on UE FA.com: "The Meridian Cup tournament will be preceded by an official gala match on 24 January, between Egypt's Al-Ahly, the reigning African Champions League holders, and Dutch champions AFC Ajax."

A test case against the reigning African Champions League holders... Sounds interesting!

-- Anonymous, October 19, 2002


From Ajax.nl:

Since there are no Eredivisie games this weekend (due to the many Euro 2004 qualifiers all over Europe) many Eredivisie teams played a friendly game against a fellow Eredivisie or First Division opponent. For Ajax this is not necessary, since opposition of such caliber resides right next door, at De Toekomst. Ajax-1 and Young Ajax played each other on the ArenA training pitches.

Of course, all players playing for their national teams were missing. The line-ups:

Ajax-1: Timmer; O'Brien, Winter, Heitinga, Maxwell; Van Halst, Pienaar, Witschge; Wamberto, Machlas, Boukhari.

Young Ajax:: Didulica (Yes Sir, that's right - good to see you back Joey!); Cruz, Mofokeng, De Jong, Valencia; Sneijder, Seedorf, Kujala; Bechan, Hosé, Krohn-Dehli.

No professional Dutch team has the guts to play against Young Ajax these days, except... the champions and Amstel Cup winners: the one and only... Ajax-1! Young Ajax suffered its first defeat against a professional first team in many, many, many months: 4-0.

Nikos Machlas opened the scoring. Steven Pienaar added a second in the first half. The third goal was scored after an erratic pass by Didulica. It was intercepted by Pienaar, who provided Nikos Machlas with an assist he could impossibly miss: 3-0.

Good for Machlas, by the way: two goals. That's the spirit. Machlas and Wamberto were replaced by Sikora and Mido for the second half. Mido worked hard (!), but did not score. It was Sikora who scored the fourth goal of the day for Ajax-1. By the way: the goalkeepers did not change goals at half-time. In other words: Timmer was Young Ajax' goalie and Didulica Ajax-1's goalkeeper in the second half. The goalkeeper that had to surrencer to Sikora's shot was - therefore - Timmer, not Didulica.

Talking about Mido: newspaper Het Parool reported that the Egyptian has had a very positive conversation with Ronald Koeman last week, following Koeman's criticism after the FC Groningen game. Koeman said that he is very satisfied about the way Mido has dealed with it. According to Koeman, Mido still didn't agree that he hadn't worked hard, but he respected Koeman's point of view and worked his guts off in the following days.

Anyways, final score: Ajax-1 4, Young Ajax 0.

-- Anonymous, September 07, 2002


Footballnl.com is reporting on the possibility of a friendly between Ajax and Zamalek Of Cairo. The article states the two clubs are in discussions to play in Cairo in January ,2003.Given the success and popularity of Mido and the potential for a large supporter turnout,such a match sounds a reasonable proposition. The originator of the article is given as Mohamed S. Chbaro, writing for www. middleeastfootball.com

-- Anonymous, August 25, 2002

Bill, maybe winning the league, the cup, looking very impressive during preseason AND beating them 3-1 in the Super Cup are the reasons for his behaviour....... wouldn't you go crazy? I'd ask Koeman to buy me if I were him.... cuz looks like Hiddink forgot all languages and can only communicate in Korean now a days!

-- Anonymous, August 20, 2002


Just watched the Ajax versus PSV game which I recorded last Thursday. Just one question to ask about the game - what have we done to upset Kezman ? He seemed to be carrying-out Rambo style attacks on the whole of the Ajax team. What a strange attitude to take into this game.

-- Anonymous, August 20, 2002

Another great report from Ben - shame it was all too brief ;-)

You almost feel as though you were there with him in the ArenA.

-- Anonymous, August 14, 2002


Greetings from Columbus ,Ohio. Realising that the Amsterdam Tournament is yesterday's story, I shall make my remarks brief.Yeah right.First, thanks to Bill and Karim for their kind words about my remarks. I thought nothing could top the atmosphere of AJAX v ManU. Boy was I wrong.The return of conquering heroes in van Gaal, Kluivert, DeBoer,and Overmars; a match-up of 1st v.2nd, 51,000 spectators in good voice; and Frank Rijkaard and his family sitting only ten seats away from me( I was again in section 102). Football heaven indeed!!

A word about Mr. Rijkaard. We all know that AJAX is synonomous with CLASS. If the never-say-die attitude of Ajax and the 4:3 result embodied the class of Ajax on the pitch, the fact that Mr. Rijkaard signed every autograph, stood for every photo,shook every hand ,and even dealt with the one drunken ass in attendance toward the end of the night with dignity and class,embodied the class of Ajax off the pitch.If I were him I would not have been as restrained. Especially since the numb-nut's histrionics appeared to make scare Mr. Rijkaard's young child. I'll bet he was able to clearly see about 1/2 the total running time of the matches. I don't know if Frank reads Ajax-USA but if he does, A BIG CHAPEAU to ol' #4.Class all the way.

Now to the match. Ajax played the first half about as sloppily as ManU in their match vs. our lads.Missed passes, over-hit and under-hit crosses, and little play from the wings marked Ajax first half effort. In all,I thought ManU had donned the Ajax home strip.

I would strongly agree that Richard Witschge's presence meant that Maxwell, left-back for the match, had to cheat forward to defend. I know that coach Koeman stated that Richard Witschge has the ability to provide a key touch leading to a scoring chance. Witness his beauty of a free-kick 20 seconds from the end. His defensive liabilites are what scare me.

I must confess that this was the first time I have seen Captain Fantastic, Christian Chivu, get beat ; especially as he did on the 0:1.Kluivert just took the position on Chivu's inside shoulder and made a really sweet play to round the keeper. World Class. In Barca's game one,vs. Parma,it was Argentine Juan Roman Riquelme who bagged a brace. This time it was not the Boca man but "Old Man (19) River" (Plate) Saviola. Ajax simply didn't mark well on the 0:2 and paid for it big time.A big no-no, happening in the 40th minute. Ajax, playing the donut defense...middle wide open, just gave Saviola all the space and time in the world. Rumour is that he ordered a sandwich before shooting.

I recall the english-language announcer; there were 2,english and dutch; and resident ManU hack, saying at half that"it's going to take Ajax three goals to win the tournament".Shows you how much he knows, it took 4.

I don't know what what said at the half but Ajax played more like Ajax of the ManU game in half 2. Mido bagged one and Ajax were off to the races...almost. We scored on 46' and then Ajax, forgetting the cardinal rule that a team is most susceptible to being scored on after it scores, showed that charity begins at home when they handed Barca the 1:3.

The 1:3 happened on 48. The rest of the match was a tighten the seatbelts affair. Back and forth, up and down ebbed the momentum. Two things swung the match in favor of Ajax. Number 1 is that our YOUNG GUNS(van der Vaart, Mido, Zlatan, van der Meyde)proved that Javier Saviola wasn't the only talented youngster on display.Van der Vaart's goal for the 2:3 was a thing of beauty; A perfect left footed blast that left keeper Roberto"I'm not an Orange, I'm a " Bonano no chance.

The 3:3 was the result of the Barca defense chasing the ball in their 6 yard box the way teenage boys chase a prom queen; all huff and puff, no brains.Pitiful defending. So much for the when in doubt, knock it out doctrine of defending.

I mentioned that, in my mind, two things swung the game Ajax's way. After the young guns coming to the fore,I believe coach Koeman's willingness to go play five attacking players ...and go for broke...was an ultimately successful roll of the dice. The pace and skills of Mido, Zlatan,Nikos Machlas,Andy van der Meyde,and Wampie over the final quarter-hour simply pushed the Barca side beyond their level of fitness at the time. I heard it said that Ajax was a week further along with their training and fitness. After half two of Sunday night,I believe it.

I would only add that the play of Hatem Trabelsi was excellent . Also, Captain Fantastic played better as the game went on.

-- Anonymous, August 13, 2002


Welcome back to Dutch football Mr. Hiddink..... hope you enjoyed the goals and a taste of what's to come in the league's program!

-- Anonymous, August 12, 2002

Ben, I enjoyed your post of the 1st game, any chance of another one for the 2nd game?

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2002


Greetings from an internet cafe somewhere in Amsterdam. Muntplein, the voice over my shoulder is saying. As if just being back in the BIG A was not enough, I was a fortunate son indeed to have sat in section 102 , row 19, seat 50 last night. Not having slept for more than 30 hours, the second half of the Barcelona- Parma tilt almost put me to sleep. Thank God for the six goals in the first half. The final was Barcelona 4:Parma 2. If you wish the details... go to the Barcelona or Parma websites!!

No amount of jet lag could have put me to sleep once Ajax v. Manchester United commenced. Over the full ninety,it was a riveting, fast-paced, ebb and flow, simply sensational match!! If Ronald Koeman were grading his side's perfomance, there would be alot of A grades given. A jax were the better side and carried the play for fully 70 or 75 of the 93 minutes played. It was as good a performance as I have seen;I am talking CONSISTENT, HIGH-LEVEL PERFORMANCE; since the the high-flying 90's.And I say this knowing full well that we did de dubbel last season.

Ajax lined out thusly:Maartan Stekelenburg, Hatem Trabelsi, Andre Bergdolmo,Christian Chivu, John O'Brien,Thomas Galasek, Rafael van der Vaart,Maxwell, Andy van der Meijde, Zlatan,and Victor Sikora. From the outset, the defense really closed off the center , making it difficult for van Nistlerooy,Veron, et.al.,to operate.Ajax were in the ascendancy almost from the outset. The first half especially saw much defending from ManU and very little to do for Maarten Stekelenberg . Ajax struck the first real blow of the match on ten minutes when player X struck the crossbar off a header. I say player X because a 6 foot tall by 8 foot wide man chose that opportune moment to stand and answer a cellphone call. I missed the opprtunity and, as the man's bulk was still shifting, the replay too. Kudos to player X for an excellent header; or so I was told.

A rock solid defense, featuring Captain Fantastic seemingly everywhere, tackles won almost everytime, forwards tracking back to win the ball, and all-out hustle from all 10 field players were wonderful sights to see. For me it was never a question of if Ajax would score, but when. Their level of play simply had me feeling that confident on the night. So, it was no surprise when, after a free- kick resulted in the ball pinballing around the ManU penalty area, Victor Sikora played the role of poacher and slotted home on 39'.

The second half played out a bit more evenly than the one-sided Ajax ascendant first 45. Highlights for me were a great save by Stekelenberg, Zlatan's clinical finish for the 2:0 goal, the continued hustle all over the pitch by AJAX, and yes, even a sweet half-turn and shot strike by Scholes for the 2:1, and ultimately consolation, goal.

Just giving credit where credit is due. ManU played well and showed alot of skill.I squirmed in my seat more than once in half two. It is not that Ajax ever let down, it is just that ManU are a quality side and no quality side will be held totally at bay for 93 minutes.

Thanks to AJAX for a magnificent ,2:1, match and for keeping my jet lag at bay.

On a personal note: If any Ajax USA types want to get together with me tomorrow, I will be: a)at my hotel early, AMS Hotel Holland 162 PC Hooftstraat ;b) Buying a round or two at the bar, across from the ArenA, featuring the hostess with the mostest, known lovingly as flat screens. I will be there from 4:00 pm to about 6:00 pm and c)I will hanging out at my seat , section 102, row 14, seat 48.

Last but never least, many thanks to the F-side for being in fine voice through-out BOTH games. The anti-van Nistlerooy chants and whistling(as loud as I have heard for any player) were gr8.

-- Anonymous, August 03, 2002


Great game against ManU...hats off to Stekelenburg, Trabelsi, Chivu, Zlatan, and Sikora for scoring his first Ajax goal!

-- Anonymous, August 02, 2002

Yes, I can, and yes, I will. First off, the Barca V Parma match: Talk about a wacky first half! Six goals in forty-five minutes, how's that for entertainment? Overall, Barca dominated the match pressing all the way, but wasn't able to force another ball down Parma's goal during the second half. Parma didn't manage to score either, match ended with a 4-2 score, with Barca receiving seven points total.

Ajax V Man.U

One man, one name: Chivu! Once again, played a superb match, totally derailed van Nistelrooy, he just couldn't get past our little Romanian gem! It'll be hard to hold on to him for ONE half of next season, not to mention an entire season. They'd better pay us big for him, classiest defender I've ever seen at this age. But then, I'm a young guy, I assume I might have missed on the occasional great player now and then. :) Back to the match, ManUtd didn't exactly seem like to having their hearts set on playing a match for the first fifteen minutes, players were just wondering around on the pitch, doing nothing in particular except occasionaly prevent some Ajax rushes from bursting through. Too bad van der Vaart hasn't found his last season form yet, he would've wiped those arrogant smirks off their faces.

Was a nice match to watch, with Ajax dominating and having the best of play. More possession as well, didn't really fully exploit our possibilities though, but we'll just ignore that, since we DID win, with 2-1 to be exact. Goalscorers were: Victor Sikora (great way to make a first home-appearance, drove the ball passed Barthez after a deflected Galásek free-kick) and Zlatan Ibrahimovic. (shooting passed a injured but still well placed Barthez). As soon as Chivu left the pitch slightly injured (subbed by Pasanen), the loss was noticable. ManUtd regained the upper hand, as the game got sloppier thanks to a lot of questionable subs, mainly on Ajax' side, and a few minutes after Chivu left, Scholes got the ball past Stekelenburg. Maarten Stekelenburg played a good match, almost felt like good ol' (94/95) van der Sar was back in goal, only better! I can't wait until next sunday, just love watching Stekelenburg keep our goal as clean as possible. And before I forget; final score: 2-1

Standings: Barcelona 1-7 Ajax 1-5 Parma 1-2 Manchester United 1-1

-- Anonymous, August 02, 2002


Can anyone give some details on these 2 matches with Man U and Barca?

Thanks,

Rich

-- Anonymous, August 02, 2002


Too bad these 2 quality pre-season friendlies will not be shown on t.v. here in the USA.

I also hope Maarten takes this opportunity and plays himself into the team on a full-time basis. For whatever reason I am not convinced that the foregin keepers are the answer. It is good to have a young Dutch prospect in my opinion.

-- Anonymous, August 02, 2002



Ajax Netwerk reports that both nights of the Amsterdam Tournament are completely sold out.

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2002

WONDERFUL DAY OUT AT NORWICH

What a pleasure to meet so many great Ajax fans, including 'stars' of Ajax USA... Menno (no you cant have my black Jeans mate), Bastiaan (sorry still cant think of any English Ajax players), and Bill Bryden (don't listen to Bill talking about flat warm beer... he lives in SOUTHERN England... enough said!!!!!!)...

Tropical weather (i have the serious sunburn and blisters to prove it!)great football, great supporters.. just a brilliant day all round!

The game itself was very much 'a game of two halves'.. now where have i heard that before... the first half being very entertaining, with Ajax producing several crisp attacking moves, and dominating possesion. Andy van Der Mayde was seemingly involved in every good Ajax incursion, whilst Zlatan was playing very well up front also. Trabelisi really caught my eye, he looked very impressive. Zlatan finished off an excellent Ajax passing move half way through the first half with a high quality headed goal. Ajax had other chances most notably Wambertos shot that crashed into the upright.

As a spectacle the game somewhat petered out in the second half, mainly due to the opressive conditions. Victor Sikora made a promising debut, coming on as a second half substitute.

All in all a very enjoyable day.

-- Anonymous, July 30, 2002


why disnt mido play in the last game in england?? i think he played very well against celtic . what do you think guys???

-- Anonymous, July 30, 2002

Great time at Norwich meeting up with all the UK based fans (and Menno & Bastiaan of course) and sharing a few beers. The football in the end seemed to be a side issue but one where Ajax did enough to win but still managed to completely outclass the opposition.

Thought Sikora did well on his debut in the second half and Zlatan had a good game throughout. Some nice tricks by Andy especially with his first half back-heel cross - really wicked.

Hope Ajax come back soon to the UK as then Menno and Bastiaan might get used to the warm, flat beer/lager.

-- Anonymous, July 29, 2002


I'm posting from Surbiton, England. Bastiaan and I visited London for two days before driving to Norwich, tomorrow morning.

Anyways... Here's a few links from the official Norwich City website (Canaries.co.uk) for your pre-game reading pleasure...

A Big Day For The Club

Worthy Looks Forward To Centenary Fixture

-- Anonymous, July 26, 2002


All Ajax goals from the Celtic-Ajax game now available from SuperShota: http://www.geocities.com/supershota/

-- Anonymous, July 26, 2002

I Had a great time at Celtic Park last night, & to be honest Celtic fans after the game were gutted, even if it was only a friendly. They left the stadium sounding a little worried about there Champions League prospects. Ajax however can build on their overall performance which was strong, Celtic never really looked a threat, & the home crowd were pretty quiet all night apart from after their goal. Ajax fans however never shut up & were by far the noisier. Bring on the Tournament & the new season!!!

-- Anonymous, July 25, 2002

Well, what a game!!!! Ajax played a 5-3-2 formation, and Celtic didn't had an answer to that. 1st half was good, 2nd was bad. Winter replaced over Trabelsi, Van der Meijde for Zlatan.

Positive points: Chivu, always good. Lobont, very good reflexes. Zlatan, finally out of worries? Seedorf, good debut(proper English?).

Negative points: 2nd half, nobody good hold the ball in possesion. Winter: to slow and to old. Pasanen: Larson good always get the ball first. Pasanen is to slow. Bergdolmo, was playing left-back. Not the right spot for him, many passes went wrong. John O'Brien, looked a bit tired, was not paying attention sometimes. Maxwell was inviseble. Van der Vaart was also tired and a bit scared when a Celt was sliding towards his knees.

But overall, nice to see Ajax win that easily against an other champion. Good start of the season.

-- Anonymous, July 25, 2002


Bill Bryden was asking a very on point question about which formation Ajax would use tonight.I too was wondering whether it would be 4-4-2 or 4-3-3. After listening to Celtic.co.uk's webcast, I still am not sure what formation Ajax used. But, whatever it was, it was a success. BIG KUDOS to Captain Fantastic! Even Celtic radio had Christian Chivu's name popping up constantly. Kudos to Bogdan Lobont. It sounded like he played a very solid game between the sticks. His early second have save sounded a top class one , even on the web.Kudos too to Mido and Zlatan. Too bad they played only 45 together. It know this was a friendly but the offensive sparks seemed to fly with them up top together.

-- Anonymous, July 24, 2002

Holy hand grenades Batman! 0:3 to Ajax after 25'. Zlatan on 7' and Mido on 10' set the tone. Mido approx. 22' got the third.

-- Anonymous, July 24, 2002

I bought my ticket for the friendly game at Norwich City, with no problems whatsoever. I am a Ajax fan in North West England, and have to say the Norwich staff were excellent! ANY AJAX WANTING TO MEET UP BEFORE THE GAME FOR A CHAT PLEASE E-MAIL ME, IT WOULD BE GREAT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Also... does anyone know of any Ajax supporters clubs in the UK? Best wishes groetjes van Engeland mark (english guy by the way)

-- Anonymous, July 22, 2002

I received a couple of e-mails today from people asking whether there's an Emmen vs Ajax match report coming up. Yes, there is. We publish a match report of every Ajax game. No exceptions.

I wrote the match report last night. It's ready to be put on the website, but that's our honourable webmaster's job. Seems like he's out today. I'm sure he'll put it up straight away when he arrives back home. A little bit of patience and it'll be available for you.

Cheers,

-- Anonymous, July 21, 2002


Hi Rio,

Thanks for posting to the Ajax USA dicsussion forum!

I've already got my tickets for the Norwich game. I look forward to visiting Carrow Road. Some of our English members speak highly of the city of Norwich. I can't wait. I've been checking a lot of Norwich fan forums lately and posted a few messages on a few of them. The Norwich fans were very helfpul. Like you, they told me that we're welcome in Norwich, and that we will not be regarded as 'the enemy' for this game.

From our side, it will be the same. My estimation is that about 200 of us will come over. We'll be joined by quite a few English Ajax fans (mostly members of Ajax USA as well, since we're the only decent Ajax news source in English). The Ajax fans who'll go just want to have a good time, drink a few beers and have a chat with Norwich fans.

About our line-up: we've been playing Dutch amateur sides only so far, in pre-season. The Norwich game is the first serious, international test-case. I think the line-up will be something like this:

Goalkeeper: Bogdan Lobont (Romanian national goalie)

Defense: Hatem Trabelsi (Tunisian, played at World Cup), André Bergdĝlmo (Norwegian, former Rosenborg), Cristian Chivu (captain of Ajax and Romania, one of our 'superstars') and John O'Brien (USA player, one of the revelations during the World Cup).

Midfield: not sure, but expect Aron Winter and Richard Witschge, two Ajax and Holland veterans, plus Rafaël van der Vaart, a.k.a. the next Ajax rookie in the Cruijff/Bergkamp category.

Forwards: Andy van der Meyde (Ajax youth, just had his debut for Holland), Mido (yes, he'll be there) and our tiny Brazilian, Wamberto.

We'll play 'Ajax style'. That is: fast, offensive, with high skills, but not too much (read: not enough) physical power and three strikers, of which two real 'wingers' (Van der Meyde on the right and Wamberto on the left).

I know it's Norwich's centenary game. Congratulations. I hope you'll have a better centennial season than Ajax in 2000... It was our crappiest season in thirty years...

It's gonna be fun - that's for sure. Hope to see you on the 27th!

-- Anonymous, July 21, 2002


Forgot to mention our few(!) other claims to fame:

We have won the League Cup twice and reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup 3 times (famously as a 3rd division club in 1959).

Our main chant - "On The Ball City" is sung uniquely by Norwich supporters and is reputed to be the oldest surviving football chant in the world (sung virtually since the club was founded).

Also, as I am half-Egyptian, I am very interested in seeing Mido play - does anyone know if he will and what sort of line-up Ajax will put out? Thanks.

-- Anonymous, July 21, 2002


Hi, I'm a Norwich City fan and really looking forward to our friendly with Ajax next week. If any of you are coming I'd just like to mention that we are one of the friendliest clubs in England and have a reputation for not having a major hooligan element. I don't know if any of you know this, but its our Centenary match and apparently we are not wearing our usual yellow but a new blue and white shirt which was our original colours. Here's a bit of info about us:

We are the only league club in the county of Norfolk so draw on a large catchment area of support (average attendance last season in division 1 was around 18000). Our rivals are Ipswich. Our highest league finish was 3rd in the premier league in 1993, the following season we played in the UEFA Cup and remain the only English side to defeat Bayern Munich in Munich (2-1). We eventually reached the 3rd round, losing narrowly to Inter Milan in our only season in Europe (the ban on English clubs from Europe in the 80s denied us 3 chances of European football). We were relegated from the premier league in 95 due to selling all our best players but we still have no money to spend for new players. Last season we were a penalty shootout away from the premier league but sadly lost the division 1 play-off final to birmingham. Famous ex-Norwich players still playing at the moment include Chris Sutton (now at Celtic), Danny Mills (Leeds) and Craig Bellamy (Newcastle). Martin O'Neill (manager of Celtic) both played and managed us. We have quite a strong young team at the moment, players to look out for are Gary Holt (midfield), Paul McVeigh (forward), Malky Mackay (defence) and Robert Green (keeper).

-- Anonymous, July 21, 2002


I dfu'ed on the name..it is Ognjenovic of course. Well, no matter, he has scored two today. Ajax netwerk.to reports a "minor" butt-whupping in progress..0:8!I hope they save a few for the matches next week.

-- Anonymous, July 20, 2002

Chalk up one for OGGIE!! Ogjenovic scored the first for Ajax away at Emmen today. Don't know if game is final yet. Ajax were up 0:3 after 38 minutes. Ogjenovic Trabelsi, en van der Meijde had scored for the good guys.

-- Anonymous, July 20, 2002

From the official Norwich City website (Canaries.co.uk):

Koeman Opens New Norwich City Indoor Academy Arena

-- Anonymous, July 19, 2002


Just a quickie plug for KLM-UK, who I have found to be cheaper than EasyJet for certain flights Stansted/Amsterdam. Also they have an air- miles scheme which could mount-up over a season. Give them a try.

-- Anonymous, July 11, 2002

Got a few spare moments, or do you need a short coffee break? Why don't you take a quick look at the websites of Ajax' pre-season amateur opponents? Photos of their game against Ajax will appear on most of them, I suppose... (they just don't seem in too much of a hurry).

Zeeburgia, Second Class amateurs, from Amsterdam-East.

Be Quick, Second Class amateurs, from Zutphen.

Achilles '12, First Class amateurs from Hengelo (Ov.).

AGOVVV, Top Class amateurs and over-all Amateur Champion of The Netherlands in 2002, from Apeldoorn.

Write something in the guestbook (if they have one) and you'll be the talk of the town: "They know our club in America!!" ;-)

-- Anonymous, July 11, 2002


Menno's match report has been posted to Ajax USA. Check it out!

-- Anonymous, July 10, 2002

Update on previous posting - Mido scored 3 goals.

-- Anonymous, July 10, 2002

Apparently a very tight match with Ajax just squeezing through with fourteen lucky goals.

Ajax Network reported 5 goals for Mido.

Seems married life agrees with him.

-- Anonymous, July 09, 2002


Anything about tonights game?

-- Anonymous, July 09, 2002

Check this out... Here are some pict ures of Zeeburgia vs Ajax, on Vak410.nl, including some pictures of the 'dog incident'. The game had to be briefly interrupted because a dog walked onto the pitch. See how the Zeeburgia goalkeeper, who looked a bit like Amsterdam's most beloved folk singer André Hazes, risks his own life by approaching the fierce dog and ordering it to leave the pitch. The crowd was holding its breath, I can tell you.

-- Anonymous, July 08, 2002

As I'm writing this, the Ajax players bus is on its way to De Lutte, a village in the eastern province of Overijssel. Ajax departed from the ArenA at 14:00 PM today, after a morning training session. Ajax will stay in training camp for one week. During the week, friendly games against Be Quick (in Zutphen, on Tuesday), Achilles '12 (in Hengelo, on Thursday) and AGOVV (in Apeldoorn, on Saturday) are on the agenda.

After the AGOVV game, Ajax is headed back to Amsterdam, to continue the preparations with some friendly games against professional opponents. Dutch First Division sides FC Haarlem and Emmen are up first.

-- Anonymous, July 08, 2002


The first pre-season match is history and it was, as expected,a walk in the park for Ajax. The final score was Ajax 8 : A.V.V Zeeburgia 1. Ajax.nl has the full report, pictures, and the way Ajax lined out in each half on its home page. I saw some comment about injuries to Bergdolmo and Heitinga.I hope these are nothing more than typical getting into shape , training ground knocks.

-- Anonymous, July 06, 2002

You can tick my name off Menno - 99 to go.

-- Anonymous, July 05, 2002

I know we have about 100 members from the United Kingdom. I wonder how many of you will go see the Norwich City vs Ajax friendly on July 27. Who's going to be there? Got tickets for the Ajax end?

-- Anonymous, July 04, 2002

From Ajax.nl:

The preparations for the new season will officially start this Wednesday, 03 July, as the Ajax-1 quad is due back at the ArenA. The first training session of the season will start at 10:30, Dutch time.

Three players will not be there: Hatem Trabelsi, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and John O'Brien get to enjoy some more time off, after their World Cup campaigns with Tunisia, Sweden and the United States, respectively.

John O'Brien will be the last Ajacied to join the team. The American had the longest World Cup campaign and is to join the rest after Ajax' training camp in the Dutch village of De Lutte. O'Brien will go back in training on 15 July. Zlatan and Trabelsi will join Ajax to De Lutte. They're due at the ArenA on Monday, 08 July.

I will go to the ArenA on Wednesday for the first training session. Look out for a special report of the first training day on the Ajax USA homepage...

-- Anonymous, July 01, 2002


This is interesting stuff... Ajax Netwerk reports Ajax is one of the three candidates to play Borussia Dortmund (@ Westfalen Stadium, Dortmund) in the 'farewell game' for defender Jürgen Kohler. Borussia have already contacted Ajax about this. They want to play a friendly against an attractive opponent. Juventus, Ajax and Bayern Munich have been contacted.

A date for Kohler farewell game is yet to be found. Borussia wanted to play it on 20 July, initially, but none of the three possible opponents were available on that day (Ajax plays a friendly against Emmen on the 20th).

I hope they can sort this out. Would be nice.

-- Anonymous, June 28, 2002


A couple of little laughs to get us into the right frame of mind for the arrival of Moan U:-

David Beckham is the guest speaker at a management seminar. He steps up to the podium and begins his speech. "They're small and minty and keep my breath fresh for up to two hours, and to Victoria's delight they're only two calories". The audience looks stunned, when a small voice from the side of the podium whispers:- "No David, you're here to talk about tactics”

Be on the lookout for a new breed of 'Evil Manc' computer viruses that could seriously affect / infect your PC.

Virus name and what it does: 1) The Manchester United Virus - This where the computer develops a memory disorder and forgets about every thing before 1993.

2) The Manchester United shirt virus - This one is especially hard to detect as it changes its format every three months.

3) The David Beckham virus - This affects newer computers mainly. The computer looks great, all the lights are on, but nothing works.

4) The Roy Keane virus - Throws you out of Windows.

5) The Alex Ferguson virus - The computer develops a continuous whining noise. The on screen clock runs a lot slower than all the other computers in the building.

6) The Andy Cole virus - The computer is unable to get any thing into the Inbox.

7) The Ryan Giggs virus - The computer develops a processor problem whereby it thinks it's better than it actually is. It also experiences dramatic fluctuations in performance.

8) The Fabien Barthez virus - You just can't save anything.

-- Anonymous, June 17, 2002


Yeah I believe you are correct Menno. But you could also argue the other side of the coin by saying Norwich would be less likely to sell tickets to an Englishman for the Dutch away end in these days of strict segregation. As the saying goes - you pays your money, you takes youre choice.

-- Anonymous, June 16, 2002

In addition to Bill's post: Bill's an Ajax fan, but he's also English. This might have increased his chance of success, you'd say. However, I also know a few Dutch guys who have purchased their tickets from the Norwich City tickets office and were helped, no questions asked. So they don't re-direct you to Ajax or whatever, if you're a Dutchie and therefore obviously an 'away fan'.

-- Anonymous, June 16, 2002

Menno's correct in that we obtained our tickets direct from Norwich City. I was even told by Ajax ticket office to purchase the tickets by this method.

-- Anonymous, June 16, 2002

According to the Dapp're Strijders fanzine, presale for the Celtic and Norwich pre-season games will start early July. The fansite reports that tickets for the respective away ends will be available at the Amsterdam ArenA only. I know for fact that this is not entirely true. Several Ajax fans I know have ordered a ticket for the Norwich game through the club's tickets hotline. Norwich City FC are very helpful and are willing to reserve tickets for Ajax fans (away section). You can find the phone number on the official Norwich City FC website: Canaries.co.uk.

-- Anonymous, June 15, 2002

Easiest way but most certainly the most expensive is by plane direct from Amsterdam to Norwich. If a car-load is going then unless the tickets are booked early enough with easyjet, the boat from Hook to Harwich could be the best bet (unless you cannot resist the blackjack etc on the boat). Can sometimes be a little bit difficult to park due to the home-fans tractors.

-- Anonymous, May 30, 2002

Oh damn... I f##ked up the link to the Carrow Road profile. Oh well, it's working anyway...

-- Anonymous, May 30, 2002

Ajax fans planning to go see Norwich City vs Ajax on 27 July, you should definitely check out this great profil e of Norwich's Carrow Road stadium. My friends Bill and Ray already told me that it's a very friendly and beuatiful place, with loads of good pubs near the ground. This profile kind of confirms what they told me.

I suppose flying with EasyJet (Amsterdam - Luton) is the easiest and definitely the cheapest way to go. Even cheaper than going by boat, I believe.

-- Anonymous, May 30, 2002


Another question, do you know of tour guides for tours of Amsterdam, especially the Jewish quarter?

Are there also day trips available to places such as the Hague?

I will be in AMsterdam with my wife from July 29 - August 5th.

Josh.

-- Anonymous, May 29, 2002


Thank you Menno for your help!

-- Anonymous, May 26, 2002

Hi Joshua,

I'll try to answer your questions...

1. "How are the 2 star hotels listed in the package through Ajax travel?"

They're good! Our Ajax USA group stayed at the AMS Holland, in Amsterdam-South, right next to Vondelpark and. Walking distance to Leidseplein. The rooms are basic, but good and they have everything you need in it (no shared facilities). The other hotels are pretty much of the same level, also adjacent to Vondelpark.

2. "Are the hotels close to the ArenA?"

No. Luckily not, I would say. The ArenA is in the south-eastern suburb of Bijlmermeer. A dead, and not very attractvie business area. The hotels are in the heart of the city. However, there's an excellent metro connection from Central Station to the ArenA (18 mins). If you're staying at the AMS Holland, the best way to go there is to take tram #6, #7 or #10 (stop near your hotel) east-bound. On Weesperplein you catch the metro (#54, in direction Gein).

3. "If I wanted to go from Monday or Tuesday through the sunday night can Ajax travel accomodate that and also is there a phone # for reservations or does it all have to go through the net?"

I'm sure they can arrange that for you. They're very helpful on the phone. Dial +31 20 3111 444 and ask for Ajax Travel.

-- Anonymous, May 26, 2002


How are the 2 star hotels listed in the package through Ajax travel? Are the hotels close to the ArenA? They seemed OK from their website. It also looks like a very fair deal.

If I wanted to go from Monday or Tuesday through the sunday night can Ajax travel accomodate that and also is there a phone # for reservations or does it all have to go through the net?

-- Anonymous, May 25, 2002


Maybe Moan U will parade the new strip at the Amsterdam Tournie :

In the best interests of all confused current Manchester United supporters, Nike have announced that next year the Man Utd kit will feature a reversible shirt, similar to the current England shirt. One side will feature the existing Man Utd home kit but, once reversed, will transform into the current Arsenal home kit. This radical move is aimed specifically to pacify the Manchester United supporter who naturally expects his team to win all their home games and, at the very minimum, the Premiership. The new shirt will give the Man Utd supporter the opportunity to maximise his glory hunting potential by supporting whoever is likely to win the title. The new shirts are expected to go on sale in the Manchester United strongholds of Hampshire, Surrey, Essex and Kent in the close season. For those supporters that are unable to wait that long they will be released to the genuine supporters of Malaysia, Papa New Guinea and Outer Mongolia within the next month. Next season could also see Man Utd shirts featuring reversible Liverpool, Leeds and Chelsea kits depending on who is doing well at the time, although the plans for the Aston V***a reversible shirt have been scrapped since the appointment of Graham Taylor. Rumours persist in a reversible Man Utd/Argentina shirt but these have yet to be confirmed.

Disclaimer : any resemblance to the truth is purely coincidental.

-- Anonymous, May 17, 2002


No amount of ass-kissing can ever be considered 'enough.' But this was at least adequate, so let's see how we can help you...

I strongly recommend you book a group package with Ajax Travel; see http://www.ajax.nl/show/id=10 4335 for info about their Amsterdam Tournament package. Ajax Travel was our travel parter for our trip in March, and they arranged for a good hotel at a cheap rate, good seats for both matches, and overall excellent service for our group.

Next, I recommend you check out the Links section of our Trip page. Lots of good info to be found there.

Finally, I recommend you read up on your Ajax History, so you don't feel so bad when your boys lose to their stylish hosts. ;-)

If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to ask. Either post here, or contact me directly at jim@ajax-usa.com.

-- Anonymous, May 09, 2002


i have seen your site and found more info there than anywhere else about the pre-season tourament @ ajax . we are trying to sort things out early as about 10 - 20 of us disappointed united fans want to start next season straight away by visiting your fine stadium in one of the best cities in the world . now thats enough ass kissing please send me any more info or details when they come available . yours in sport dave.

-- Anonymous, May 09, 2002

Check out the 'travel' section of Ajax.nl for Amsterdam Tournament packages. Detailed info and pricing is available now!

-- Anonymous, May 03, 2002

Great news for all Southern England Ajax fans - Ajax are playing a pre-season friendly on Saturday 27 July 2002 at the mighty Norwich City. Great place to visit as one of its claims to fame is that it has a pub for every day of the year !!!. Also noted from Ajax.nl that Ajax are playing Celtic in Glasgow on the 24 July 2002.

-- Anonymous, April 17, 2002

Sunday, I e-mailed Ajax Travel asking if any there would be any travel packages for the 2002 Amsterdam Tournament. I would like to share the contents of my reply with any members who, like myself, wish to attend. As stated before, the match dates are Friday, August 2nd, and Sunday, August 4th.

The e-mail begins" The Amsterdam Tournament Package is especially composed for you and/or your clients who wish to have a sportive stay in one of Europe's most beautiful cities(AMEN TO THAT!!). It includes the following items:

1)One return transfer by KLM Airport Shuttle Service from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport to Amsterdam city centre and vice-versa.

2)Three nights(August 2 thru 5 ,departing on the 5th)stay in a two, three, four, or five star hotel in the City Centre or outskirts of THE BIG A. The stay would be in a single or double room including breakfast buffet and 5% city tax.

3)One entrance ticket(i.e. match ticket) to the matches on the 2nd and the 4th of August 2002.

4)One ArenA food and beverage card, valued at 4.54 euros.No cash used in the ArenA ,of course.

5)One hour regular canal cruise.

6)Two return tickets for Public transport,one for each match day: Amsterdam Centre/ ArenA/Amsterdam Centre.

7)One entrance voucher for the Ajax Museum.

Package costs are broken down depending on hotel preference and are based upon double occupancy,per three nights stay( check-in on the 2nd and checkout on the 5th) 1)For trip with lodging in a 2-star Hotel:370.0o euros

2)For trip with lodging in a 3-star Hotel:450.00 euros

3)For trip with lodging in a 4-star Hotel:525.00 euros

Single rooms are available at an extra 51,61, and 79 euros per night respectively. Additional nights in hotel are available, at added cost,also.Air fare not included in cost but I understand Ajax Travel can arrange it if requested.

For a complete list of the various hotels in each range, e-mail me privately or request the Amsterdam Tournament 2002 Package from Yvon Verwoerd @Ajax Travel.The e-mail is Yv@atp.nl or you can access the ATP site thru Ajax.nl's english language site(the travel link,I believe).

I am going and hope to see a few members in August.

-- Anonymous, April 16, 2002


I saw this rumoured pre-season friendly so I thought I would pass it along: Celtic v. Ajax on 27 July.Perhaps someone much more in the know than me can confirm or deny. If true, talk about a high profile opponents list heading into next season.Wow! The guy talking this up was a Celtic supporter.I have heard nothing else except that it supposed to be part of the Celtic ticket book for next season.

-- Anonymous, April 04, 2002

VI Planet.nl, the website of Holland's main football weekly Voetbal International reports today that the participants for the August 2002 Amsterdam Tournament are (hold tight): AJAX, Manchester United, FC Barcelona and AC Parma.

According to VI Planet, the schedule will look like this:

Fri 02 Aug, 19:00 CET: FC Barcelona vs Parma

Fri 02 Aug, 21:15 CET: Ajax vs Manchester United

Sun 04 Aug, 18:30 CET: Manchester United vs AC Parma

Sun 04 Aug, 20:45 CET: Ajax vs FC Barcelona

Not bad... :-)

VI Planet is usually reliable, but sometimes they're a little bit fast in announcing something. If this is true, Ajax will be pretty proud of this line-up and announce it on Ajax.nl straight away. We will wait for confirmation on Ajax.nl before we run this as news on the Ajax USA homepage.

-- Anonymous, March 28, 2002


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