Tottenham Hotspur’s first-ever Champions League semifinal match ended in defeat, courtesy of Ajax’s Donny van de Beek scoring in the 15th minute. Despite the deficit, Spurs’ inability to score came from no lack of effort, leaving all to play for in the tie’s second leg.
The game’s lone goal came early, but after Ajax’s dominance of the opening minutes of the match. The Spurs defense looked shaky in those moments, which was particularly true for Davinson Sánchez. Eventually, though, the goal came after Hakim Ziyech sent a ball into the penalty area, where van de Beek was able to find it and finish the chance. Referee Antonio Mateu went to VAR, looking for an offside claim, but the refereeing team felt that Kieran Trippier kept van de Beek onside by a small margin, and the goal stood.
Spurs fielded a back three comprised of Ajax veterans Sánchez, Toby Alderweireld, and Jan Vertonghen, while Trippier and Danny Rose played in wide positions. Victor Wanyama made another start, and was joined by Dele, another former Ajax veteran in Christian Eriksen, Lucas Moura, and Fernando Llorente in front of him.
Ajax’s goal seemed to give them more energy, and the team continued to move easily in midfield as they looked to add to their lead. Spurs slowly started making its way further up the field, though, with Lucas frequently leading the way.
At around the 33 minute mark, Vertonghen and Alderweireld rose for a ball in Ajax’s penalty area, which resulted in a clash of heads. Though Alderweireld was fine, Vertonghen was first treated for a cut on the nose, asked to change his clothes after bleeding on them, and was cleared to play by the medical team. Very soon after his reintroduction, he asked to come off with possible signs of concussion, though any diagnosis has not been shared with the public. In the 39th minute, he was replaced by Moussa Sissoko, which changed Spurs’ shape.
Upon the introduction of Sissoko, the dynamic of the match changed. Spurs and Ajax were going back and forth, and the end of the first half saw a few Spurs chances from Llorente, Alderweireld, and Sissoko miss the goal by narrow margins.
The second half saw much more of the back and forth nature teased at the end of the first, and showed more of what Spurs’ new shape created. With a switch to a midfield diamond, Ajax’s midfield rhythm was disrupted, and space was created further up the pitch. It led to an improved performance for Llorente, who was playing in a system that was not naturally suited to his skillset.
The results were evident as soon as the second half opened, as Llorente took a shot that narrowly missed the goal. The two teams continued to trade shots in search for an equalizer, in Spurs’ case, or a security goal of sorts for Ajax. An attempt in the 78th minute from David Neres was perhaps the best chance that either team had in the second half to score, but his shot from the left side of the box hit the right post and was eventually knocked out for a throw-in.
Both teams continued their search for a goal — in the case of Spurs, an equalizer, and for Ajax, a security goal of sorts — that never came. Though Ajax opened stylishly and in dominant form, the rest of the match played like a rather even affair. Possession was almost split evenly, and Spurs barely edged Ajax in shots, 12 to 10. Ajax managed just two shots on target, one being van de Beek’s goal, while Spurs managed just one.
Spurs next face AFC Bournemouth in Premier League action on Saturday before the two teams meet again for the second leg at Johan Cruijff Arena on Wednesday, May 8.