Ajax is in the final of the tournament for the KNVB Cup. The club from the capital defeated Feyenoord in De Kuip 2-1. The semi-final battle was halted for almost half an hour after Davy Klaassen, the maker of the winning goal, was hit by a lighter from the audience. He suffered a head injury and was bleeding profusely.
The game was interrupted for half an hour in the 62nd minute. Klaassen appeared on the field for a while after the restart, but was unable to continue. Ajax will meet PSV in the final on April 30, just like last year when the club from Eindhoven was the strongest (2-1).
Completely against custom, Ajax’s coach declared Feyenoord the favorite for a place in the final beforehand. Trainer John Heitinga pointed to the position of the Eredivisie, where the club from Rotterdam has now taken 8 points away from the two main competitors. Feyenoord is also in the quarterfinals of the Europa League.
Revenge
Feyenoord was especially stronger before the break and the players of trainer Arne Slot also looked fitter then. Nevertheless, Ajax took the lead in the 14th minute. Marcus Pedersen and Alireza Jahanbakhsh misjudged a cross from Jorge Sánchez, the replacement for the unfit Devyne Rensch. They collided and saw Dusan Tadic take advantage (0-1).
Jahanbakhsh soon got a chance to take revenge. But the right winger hit the post after a good cross from Quilindschy Hartman. Jahanbakhsh still had a large share in the equalizer in stoppage time of the first half. With a beautiful cross, he enabled Santiago Giménez to hit the target.
Nice reflexes
Jahanbakhsh had escaped the attention of Youri Baas, the left back who was again preferred to Calvin Bassey and Owen Wijndal who attracted a total of 33 million euros last year. Giménez was also close to the equalizer halfway through the first half, but then encountered goalkeeper Gerónimo Rulli. On the other hand, Davy Klaassen almost scored the 0-2.
Klaassen still scored in the 51st minute, after goalkeeper Timon Wellenreuther had prevented Steven Bergwijn and Tadic from scoring with beautiful reflexes. After the resumption Feyenoord got another big chance. Giménez headed on the post. As a result, Ajax can still end a disappointing season on April 30 with a prize. Ajax ended the match with 10 men. Kenneth Taylor received his second yellow card of the game in stoppage time.