On January 23rd, Ajax hosted Feyenoord in the Dutch Cup quarter-finals.
The Dutch Cup is a single-elimination tournament in the knockout stages; whoever wins advances.
Ajax drew a home game, which was considered an advantage.
However, after a fierce battle with Eindhoven, they immediately faced Feyenoord, likely putting them at a disadvantage in terms of physical and mental energy, thus canceling out any initial advantage.
In this match, Immers finally started.
While the commentators were still introducing the starting players for both teams, Immers had already sprinted into Feyenoord's half, relying on Feyenoord's defensive midfielder Immers to receive the ball and pass it back to Bojan, who had rushed up to support him.
It was a small test of their abilities.
Ajax, of course, still used a 4-3-3 formation for this match.
Immers occupied the center forward position, Bojan was deployed as the left winger, and Sean remained the right winger.
There were no changes in the midfield and defense.
When Immers rushed into the penalty area, Ajax's overall formation had already crossed the halfway line.
Oh ho~
Immers suddenly saw Bojan cutting from the center towards Feyenoord's goal.
'Aren't you just running into the same space as me?'
Immers decisively ran horizontally to the left.
Though Immers had risen to prominence and Bojan seemed to be declining, the title of 'Barça's Little Prince' clearly held more weight.
Feyenoord's center-back Mathijsen did not continue to follow Immers, but instead turned to confront Bojan.
Blind, who was on the ball for Ajax, delivered a timely diagonal pass, but it was directed to Immers.
Oh my~
Although the ball penetrated Feyenoord's midfield, it came directly.
Immers could only actively move to meet the ball.
Feyenoord's Van Beek and Clasie immediately converged on Immers.
Immers did not stop the ball; instead, he used his right foot to flick it along its trajectory, successfully evading Feyenoord's center-back Van Beek, and then followed up with his left foot to take a shot.
The angle was too tight, and the ball hit the side netting.
Feyenoord prepared for a goal kick.
As Immers withdrew from the penalty area, he approached Bojan,
"Dude, you were too far forward just now; my passing lane was blocked.
If you had taken two steps back, I might have been able to pass the ball!"
Bojan glanced at Immers, said nothing, and ran off.
Immers frowned. What did this guy mean?
You like to go to the middle, and I even proactively swapped positions with you.
Now, you should increase your running and try to create a receiving angle so we can cooperate smoothly.
What do you mean by not saying anything?
However~ this guy came from the 'Dream Team' Barça, so fluid cooperation is a basic requirement; he shouldn't be ignorant of such a simple truth.
Although this guy's career has been on a downward spiral after an initial peak, he definitely has flaws in various aspects.
But since he was able to reach such heights initially, he absolutely has something to him.
What he wanted was a big victory against the opponent; relying solely on himself wasn't very likely, but working together with his teammates offered a higher chance.
Teammates have varying strengths and weaknesses; the weaker ones just need not to drag the team down. Bojan should be in the category of those who can be relied upon, right?
With that conclusion, Immers immediately stopped overthinking and turned to mark the opponent's defensive midfielder.
Feyenoord, as one of the Eredivisie's top three teams, also played the traditional Dutch 4-3-3 formation.
The total football philosophy influenced every aspect of Dutch football, not just the national team, but most clubs were also deeply affected by this philosophy.
This was reflected in the 4-3-3 formation.
Feyenoord's goalkeeper Mulder did not pass the ball to his supporting center-back but instead launched a direct long kick.
The ball fell directly into midfield.
Feyenoord's Pellè arrived at the landing spot, battling Blind and fiercely heading the ball.
This later famous Luneng player was a good center forward.
His ex-wife Varga was also good.
Unfortunately, ten years of dating and two years of marriage, a total of twelve years of a long-distance relationship, could not withstand the sharp drop in income after retirement.
Pellè was eventually dumped.
In short, Pellè's heading ability was quite strong, and he successfully headed the ball towards his teammate.
Unfortunately, he was still affected by Blind, and the landing spot wasn't as accurate.
Feyenoord's right winger Schaken had to run back a few steps to receive the ball.
Ajax's left midfielder Duarte pressed forward, and the others took the opportunity to get into position, maintaining their defensive formation.
Feyenoord did not commit many players to attack; it was a probing attack and ultimately came to nothing.
Ajax did not probe; they immediately attacked again.
Feyenoord immediately retreated with all players; it seemed they intended to use a defensive 4-3-3 shape today.
Playing away from home, it seemed understandable.
Ajax was not in a hurry either; since the vertical space had disappeared, they would simply increase their movement to create space.
The players immediately intensified their runs and passes.
Feyenoord's players naturally also continuously pressed and actively ran, maintaining their defensive formation.
As time passed, Ajax gradually gained control, but they couldn't immediately create clear scoring opportunities.
Immers moved in and out of the penalty area, hoping to draw out the opponent's center-backs.
However, the passing and running cooperation with Bojan and Duarte still had problems; they often crowded each other.
Since that was the case, they would just increase their long-range shots.
In just over ten minutes, Immers, Bojan, and Klaassen all took a long-range shot.
It wasn't until the 20th minute that Sean received the ball on the right side of the penalty area and delivered a cross.
Immers, battling Feyenoord's center-back Van Beek, headed the ball towards the goal, and it finally hit the target for the first time.
However, Immers failed to get into the correct position during the challenge, and the ball merely flew high, barely falling towards the goal.
Although it was on target, it was naturally easily collected by Feyenoord's goalkeeper Mulder.
In the 24th minute, Sean again feigned a cross but pushed the ball towards the byline. Klaassen ran wide to receive the ball and delivered a cross from the byline.
Immers charged directly towards the goal, again battling Van Beek. He didn't jump very high and failed to connect with the ball.
The ball went directly to the far post and eventually went out for a goal kick.
Hmm?
Immers frowned and looked over. Why wasn't there a teammate at the far post?
Oh~
Bojan was watching from outside the penalty area!
No, at a time like this, shouldn't you be tucking in to support?
Either you rush to the middle, or you drift wide. What are you doing? Besides cutting inside, can't you play football?!
Unfortunately, Immers was not the captain, or he would have started yelling.
In the 28th minute, Ajax found another opportunity on the right wing and sent in a cross.
Immers charged horizontally to the near post, stooping to head the ball towards the goal.
Van Beek did not give an inch, again timely challenging Immers.
"Boom~"
The ball lost its accuracy and flew out for a goal kick.
Immers rolled once and immediately got back on his feet.
Van Beek also lost his balance and stumbled right in front of Immers.
Immers angrily said:
"Damn it, how do you always manage to be so timely?!"
Van Beek, with a ferocious expression, was about to argue with Immers when he suddenly froze upon hearing this, momentarily not knowing what to say:
Are you insulting me or complimenting me?
Immers didn't feel anything was wrong; he vented his emotions and turned to leave.
Leaving Van Beek to touch his hair: Why did he feel happy?
...
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