Feyenoord tacks on an extra goal to drop Ajax 0-4 in empty arena after fan unrest
Ajax lost 0-4 against Feyenoord on Wednesday afternoon. The remainder of the suspended match was played in an empty stadium on Wednesday at 2:00 p.m. The game had been abandoned after 55 minutes on Sunday afternoon due to supporters in the Johan Cruijff Arena throwing fireworks onto the pitch. Feyenoord were winning 0-3 at the time.
Feyenoord took the lead on Sunday after nine minutes by Santiago Giménez. He then scored a second goal just 8 minutes later. The match was suspended after this goal for just under ten minutes after a cup was thrown onto the pitch. The Mexican player was also behind the 0-3. A shot from a corner for Ajax was blocked, going straight into the path of Gimenez. Ajax had just one defender back, leaving Gimenez with plenty of space to play the ball across the box to Paixao, who knocked it home at the 37th minute.
Shortly before halftime, a flare was thrown onto the pitch from the F-side area of the stadium. The F-side is the Ajax hardcore supporter group. However, the match was restarted again until the F-side threw another couple of flares onto the pitch leaving the officials with no choice but to abandon the match.
On Wednesday, for the remainder of the suspended game, Santiago Giménez scored the fourth goal for Feyenoord minutes after the game resumed. He came close to scoring a fifth goal in the 88th minute.
Santiago Giménez has been directly in all four Feyenoord goals against Ajax at the Johan Cruijff Arena:
— Squawka Live (@Squawka_Live) September 27, 2023
Sunday 24th September 2023
⚽️ 09'
⚽️ 18'
🅰️ 37'
Wednesday 27th September 2023
⚽️ 59'
Completing a hat-trick across two different days. 😅 pic.twitter.com/HHkm7zFF1h
The Dutch football association KNVB announced on Monday that the remainder of the game would be played on Wednesday. The match between Ajax and FC Volendam, originally scheduled for Wednesday, has been postponed to a later date. Ajax initially indicated that they would take legal action against the KNVB's decision in court, but eventually refrained from doing so, although they questioned the KNVB's decision-making process.
Official statement Ajax:
— All About Ajax (@AllAboutAjax) September 26, 2023
"Ajax is refraining from taking legal action against the KNVB. The club was considering these following the league decision to move Ajax - FC Volendam to allow the remainder of the suspended Klassieker to be played out Wednesday afternoon."
(1/3)#Ajax
Ahead of the game, Ajax's hardcore supporters F-side called on social media for people to come to the stadium. This led the police to designate the area around the Johan Cruijff Arena as a security risk.
De eerste stap is afgelopen zondag gezet, we gaan door in onwillekeurige volgorde:
— F-SIDE (@FSideNL) September 26, 2023
Sven Mislintat ✅
Pier Eringa ⏰
Georgette Schlick ⏰
Annette Mosman ⏰
Maurits Hendriks ⏰
Jan van Halst ⏰
Tot morgen om 13.00 uur bij de Johan Cruijff Arena. #ajax #rvcout pic.twitter.com/FNuQ2LObqE
Starting at noon, the police were authorized to conduct preventive searches of everyone in the area, checking for items such as fireworks or weapons. Riot police buses were present at the main entrance of the Johan Cruijff Arena, Het Parool reported. The main entrance was barricaded with fences draped with white tarpaulin, and the Ajax fan shop was closed.
The hardcore supporters group also posted an image calling for the supervisory board members to resign. "The first step was taken last Sunday; we continue in involuntary order," the hardcore group wrote. They were pleased that Sven Mislintat left the team as director of football last week, just days after he was linked to a conflict of interest and questionable practices related to payments for player acquisition. A check mark appears behind his name on the image posted on social media. They have also called for four other Ajax officials to leave the club, including Interim CEO Jan van Halst, Chief Sports Officer Maurits Hendriks, and supervisory board members Annette Mosman, and Georgette Schlick.
Pier Eringa, the chair of the supervisory board at Ajax, announced his resignation moments before the game started. He was asked by the board of directors to resign, sources told newswire ANP. The club has a new board of directors in place since last week, which has the power to dismiss the supervisory board chair.
"Especially when things are not going well, I think you should be there as a supervisor. But I am not deaf to the criticism and not blind to the situation Ajax is currently in. For that reason I have decided to make room for a new chairman," Eringa said.
Ajax is facing one of the darkest days in his history. Ajax kicked off the Eredivisie this year with a 4-1 victory at home over Heracles. It went quickly downhill for the Amsterdam club, which lost 1-0 at home to Go Ahead Eagles, played Excelsior to a 2-2 draw, played Fortuna Sittard to a 0-0 draw, and lost 3-1 at Twente before the mishap against Feyenoord. Ajax did down Ludogorets 4-1 in the away leg of the Europa League playoff, but lost 1-0 at home. Advancing to the group stage, they played Marseille to a 3-3 draw at home.
With the 0-4 defeat against Feyenoord, Ajax is experiencing its worst start to a season in almost 60 years. The last time the Amsterdam club started so badly was in the 1964-1965 season. The club spent over 100 million in the summer to replace important players who left. But the signings have not delivered thus far, with Ajax having just one win out of their first 10 competitive matches this season.