Simon Dalton presents his prediction for the UEFA Europa League match.
Ajax’s wins are directly linked to the new coach’s active playing style. At home against Panathinaikos, the players will again focus on possession allowing the Greeks to create very few dangerous chances.
Ajax
After winning over Heerenveen (1:0) last Sunday, Ajax had four wins in a row, three of them with a minimum score. In Athens, Steven Berghuis’s goal in the first half decided everything. After the break, the Amsterdam team successfully played with a low block, focusing only on defence and barely thinking about attack, which is confirmed by the number of shots on target in the second half (0-3).
Panathinaikos
In the last round, Panathinaikos dominated the game against Botev (6:1 on aggregate), but as soon as the competition level increased, their attack struggled. If at home the team had at least four shots on target in 90 minutes, then in Amsterdam we shouldn’t expect persistent positional attacks from them. Probably, the Greeks will start both strikers Alexander Jeremejeff and Andraž Šporar, trying to put pressure on the opponent’s penalty area with crosses.
Ajax - Panathinaikos Prediction
The return game at Ajax home should follow the same way as the first match. It will be hard for Panathinaikos to get a result away, as the Dutch club is play good in defence and had conceded only one goal in four official matches this season.
