Four more.
-----
Chelsea continued to add players to the offense, the midfield, and the defenders on both sides. The more difficult it was for the front to break open the situation and create good scoring opportunities, the players in Chelsea's backfield were also burning with anxiety.
Makelele also had to step forward to relieve the pressure on Lampard. He was facing a double team from at least two of Ajax's midfielders, sometimes three. It was very difficult to organize the support.
Although Glen Johnson also had impact on the flank, he had the same problem as Glen Charles. He was all bark and no bite, and his efficiency was on the low side. He was unable to convert effective flank attacks into direct scoring opportunities.
Bridge was not Ashley Cole, or it could be said that in today's football, it was very rare to see a full-back like Ashley Cole who could cover a flank and occasionally transform into a striker.
Chelsea's flank attacks were brilliant, but in the end, they still had to pass.
If they were given the once impeccable flank combination of Ryan Giggs and David Beckham's quality of passing, Chelsea might have already knocked on Ajax's city gate.
But unfortunately, they could pass unscrupulously on the flank, but they could not pass the opportunity to let Crespo and Hazel Bank comfortably finish the shot.
Seeing that Chelsea's formation was getting more and more pressing, Ajax's counterattack also became simple and crude.
In the 77th minute of the game, Qin Xiong took the initiative to run in the backfield to pull the flank. After receiving Heitinga's direct pass to relieve the siege, he also sent a direct pass from the flank.
Van Der Vaart went straight forward along the very open space on the flank and quickly dribbled the ball to the front of the penalty area. In this wave of counterattack, Ajax played a high quality and speed impact.
Van Der Vaart passed the ball in front of the penalty area to Ibrahimovic, who ran out of space to receive. The latter steadily protected the ball with his back as Terry closed in on him, and then fancily used his heel to knock the ball to the left flank of the penalty area.
Snede successfully reversed the offside from the side and received the ball with a volley. The football flew unstoppably into the upper left corner of Chelsea's goal.
"It's over! Ajax killed Chelsea! Van Der Vaart, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and Snede performed a wonderful cooperation. There was also Qin Xiong, who had planned all of this. They calmly took advantage of Chelsea's weakness in the rear defense, as they were in a hurry to score. Chelsea's offense was unable to break open the situation, so they had to sacrifice their defense to invest more attacking players in the front field. As a result, the rear defense was empty, and Ajax seized the opportunity to counterattack. There was nothing to be said about this loss! The total score is now 5: 1. Chelsea has no chance. Even if they can score four goals in the remaining 15 minutes to equalize the total score, it's still not enough. They have to score at least five goals to advance! "
In the stands at Stamford Bridge, some of the Blues fans chose to leave early as they could not bear to watch any longer.
The Ajax players raised their arms high, as if the game was over and they had obtained the qualification to advance.
They were proud and proud.
But perhaps the arrogance in their bones had gone too far, turning into blind arrogance and self-confidence.
They probably regarded Chelsea as a mid-level team in the Eredivisie. Once they had played to the current score, the opponent should have given up and surrendered!
They were wrong.
The defensive line, which had obviously begun to slacken, gave Chelsea more and better chances to shoot.
In the 85th minute of the game, Chelsea made use of a corner kick and scored a goal with a header from their captain, Terry.
Terry expressionlessly ran towards the midfield with the football in his arms after the goal. He knew that the goal he scored might not help, but he did not give up. Even if his dream was doomed to be shattered and he was destined to be blocked by setbacks this season, the heart of a Blues soldier could not die!
Qin Xiong whispered to Heitinga, Eskud, and De Rong after the goal was lost in the corner kick, reminding everyone not to relax. He said it more tactfully, meaning to hold on for a little while and stay focused. Just a few minutes!
After a few minutes, we can celebrate to our heart's content!
Comain also noticed that the signs on the field were not right. Fortunately, there was not much time left in the game. Chelsea's goal came too late. If it had been 20 minutes earlier, Comain might have been more nervous.
Comain began to use substitutions to pass the time.
O 'Brien, Pasanin, and Van Damme came on the field one after another. All of them were defensive players. Qin Xiong also came off the field.
Ibrahimovic returned to the penalty area at the last moment to use his height to guard against the opponent's aerial bombing. During injury stoppage time, all of Ajax's substitutes, as well as the substitutes Qin Xiong, Snede, and Van Der Vaart, stood on the sidelines, waiting for the referee to announce the end of the game.
Finally, the whistle sounded!
All of the Ajax players on the sidelines rushed onto the field, waving their arms and shouting passionately to celebrate their advancement to the Champions League semi-finals!
"The Champions League 14 final at Stamford Bridge has ended. Ajax defeated Chelsea 2: 1 in the away game, with a total score of 5: 2, advancing to this season's Champions League semi-finals with their heads held high! This game was not as exciting as the previous confrontation between the two teams. The game was more tit-for-tat. The key points in the battle between Comain and Ranieri were restrictions and counter-restrictions. Ajax made Chelsea suffer through the correct tactical strategy and the overall stable performance of the players. The problem in front of Chelsea was also clear at a glance. They were strong on paper, but the team was not creative enough. The narrower the space, the less impressive their performance was. Perhaps they, who were good at playing large-scale games in the Premier League, could not adapt to the opponent's more varied tactical play. Ajax had a new breakthrough compared to last season. Last season, they were defeated at the door of the semi-finals by AC Milan at the last minute. This season, they convincingly got a ticket to the semi-finals. Can they go any further? When we see the team performance of this group of talented geniuses on the field, we should have expectations for them. Okay, we'll see you in the Champions League semi-finals! "
The Ajax players jumped around the field with their arms around each other's shoulders. They sang and celebrated the team's advancement to the Champions League semi-finals!
In the VIP seats, Ibrahimovic stood in place and stared at the scene on the field for a long time. He finally shook his head and turned to leave with his assistant. As he walked in the stadium tunnel, Ibrahimovic turned his head and said something to his assistant.
"I want him! Ajax's number 28. "
.....
Ranieri gracefully praised Ajax's performance after the game and also hinted to the media that he might not be able to keep his position. Even though there were still many players in Chelsea's squad who supported and liked the kind-looking coach, Ranieri had been with them through thick and thin during Chelsea's most difficult times. He had even created the achievement of "zero investment in the season" and qualified for the Champions League as he said.
Comain also praised Chelsea's performance, but it was a bit like the humility of a winner.
Fleet Street was helpless. Three teams in the Premier League had entered the Champions League this season. Newcastle United, which was eliminated in the qualifiers, had long been forgotten. So far, the Premier League teams were all wiped out in the Champions League!
When the Ajax team got on the plane back to Amsterdam, a large number of local fans had already rushed to the airport in the wee hours of the morning to wait for the heroes' return.
On the plane, the Ajax players immediately looked forward to the Champions League semi-finals.
What shocked them and even the entire European football world was that there were no powerhouses from the mainstream leagues in the Champions League semi-finals this season!
This season's Champions League had reached the semi-finals, and there was an unprecedented situation of dark horses galloping!
Ajax had consecutively eliminated the two London powerhouses to enter the semi-finals!
Porto had eliminated Manchester United and eliminated Lyon to enter the semi-finals!
Monaco had taken revenge on Real Madrid, and Monaco had entered the semi-finals under the leadership of the young marshal, Deschamps!
Deportivo La Coruña, the incredible Deportivo La Coruña had made a super comeback against the defending champion, AC Milan, and entered the semi-finals!
The top five powerhouses in the top 16 who were the favorites to win the championship were all wiped out!
This was the charm of the Cup, the paradise of adventurers. The process might be jaw-dropping with ups and downs.
The Ajax players looked at each other after getting the results of the other games. Everyone's eyes flashed with ambition and excitement.
They knew that if they were to face AC Milan, Real Madrid, and Manchester United, one by one, they might be able to win one or two, but to win all of them was harder than ascending to the heavens!
However, the other teams that had entered the semi-finals had changed their direction to help.
Indeed, the semi-finals did not necessarily mean that their overall strength was stronger than the eliminated teams. Perhaps if Real Madrid and AC Milan were switched, Ajax and Deportivo La Coruña would both be eliminated. But this was the charm of the Cup.
In the semi-finals where there was no absolute difference in overall strength, it could be said that the possibility of the four teams winning the championship was roughly the same. This was enough to excite Ajax!
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
