Ajax 4-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund best match under his leadership, coach says

Coach Erik ten Hag saw Ajax play perhaps the best match under his leadership against Borussia Dortmund (4-0) in the Johan Cruijff ArenA in Amsterdam on Tuesday. "Although I can also remember a match in Madrid," he said, referring to a memorable victory over Real (1-4). "But I don't think we've played much better than tonight."

"It was a fantastic performance in a great atmosphere," said Ten Hag. "We enjoyed ourselves as a team and staff. And the spectators too. We all had a great party."

Daley Blind was chosen as the man of the match. "But Berghuis was also fantastic, and how about Remko Pasveer," said Ten Hag. "We excelled collectively. We have to enjoy that now, but it can be better. I still have critical notes. We still missed too many opportunities."

Daley Blind stayed humble after being named man of the match. "The most important thing is that we won," the 31-year-old Amsterdammer said. "But this does mean something to me. I'd be lying if I said it didn't."

"I think I played a good game, but I was not the only one," Blind said to RTL. "Pasveer was fantastic with some saves. Tadic was great. Haller scored again, Antony too. This was a match at a very high level. That is not nothing, I think. At this level, we can rise to great heights. That does not happen by itself; we work hard for it."

Goalkeeper Remko Pasveer spoke of a "top night" in the Johan Cruijff Arena. "We scored four goals, and we kept the zero," he said to RTL 7. "I think that as an Ajax supporter, you cannot wish for more. It was also one of the best matches of my career for me."

Ajax striker Steven Berghuis was impressed with his team. 'We were very good with the ball in the first half. We had a lot of depth in our game and created many opportunities. We also didn't lose the ball quickly. Yes, I think we played very well," he said to RTL. "I felt I was in it tonight. It is nice when you can deliver on this stage."

Ajax also impressed Borussia Dortmunt coach Marco Rose. "We knew that Ajax is good. But they are really good. We did have a few chances. But their goalkeeper was also very good," Rose said about Pasveer. "Ajax combined so well and put so much aggression in the duels. We have to learn from this quickly. Because in two weeks we will play against each other again. But then in our stadium."