Ajax are back in the big time of European football. The Dutch giants are in their first major European final in over 20 years, and just like in 1996, they’ve done it with a predominantly young, attack-minded side. They’ve scored in each and every game during the Europa League knockout rounds.
However, their young team’s most impressive performances in the tournament have come at home. They’ve gone a perfect seven for seven at the Amsterdam ArenA, but have won just one of seven assignments away from home. That includes their last two away legs, where they lost and nearly squandered big leads to Schalke and Lyon.
However, they will have the advantage of having more rest and preparation time than their opponents since the Dutch season ended much earlier. Look for Ajax’s young legs to be the aggressors in the final and put pressure on a United defense which will have a few question marks.
Young Ajax striker Kasper Dolberg will be a major threat to take any chance he’s presented with. Dolberg has been on fire in the Europa League, where he’s scored four goals in his last five games.
Manchester United finished way down in 6th in the Premier League, but they can still punch their ticket back to the Champions League if they can beat Ajax in the Europa League final.
United have gone unbeaten in their last 10 Europa League games, although they haven’t exactly looked too convincing throughout their run. They just barely beat FC Rostov; needed extra time to beat Anderlecht; and were under threat until the last minute against Celta Vigo.
Along with having less rest than Ajax, United will also be well short of their full-strength squad for the final. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Juan Mata, Marcos Rojo, Luke Shaw, and Ashley Young are all out injured; Chris Smalling and Marouane Fellaini are both doubtful; and Eric Bailly is suspended.
With all their injuries at the back, manager Jose Mourinho could be forced to field a less-than-ideal Phil Jones-Daley Blind partnership at the center of the United defense. Mourinho also has a history of playing things very conservatively in big games, and it shouldn’t be a surprise if he adopts a similar approach against Ajax.
But United still have a lot of quality in attack, and youngsters Marcus Rashford and Jesse Lingard have shown the ability to rise up in big spots. Rashford scored a couple of important goals against Celta Vigo and Anderlecht during their Europa League campaign, while Lingard has found the net in United’s last two domestic cup finals.
Writer’s Prediction
Ajax (+305) upset United as they claim the Europa League title with a 2-1 win.
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