After shockingly dropping out of the UEFA Champions League earlier this year, Ajax bullied IK Start 9-2 to qualify to the next stage of the UEFA Cup (tag). Ajax now sits in Group F along with Sparta Prague, Espanyol, Austria Wien and Zulte Waregem.
Easy, especially when top three team from the group will qualify to the next stage. Apart from Ajax which currently sits first in the Eredivisie, the teams of Group F are having pretty bad season so far:
It is remarkable that Ajax are the only side in group F to do well in their domestic league: the Amsterdammers are at the top of the Eredivisie table since last Sunday’s triumph in Utrecht. All four of Ajax’s opponents, however, have had a disappointing start of the season. Sparta Prague are currently third in the Czech league. Not terrible (at least they’re close to the top), but the ‘Ajax of the Czech Republic’ can never be satisfied with it. Sparta won only four out of their first eight league games. Espanyol are five games underway in La Liga, but the full three points were grabbed only once. The team scored only two goals in five games and are currently Spain’s modest number 15 (in a league of 20). Zulte Waregem are also 15th, but in a league of 18. Only two out of the first eight games were won. Austria Vienna, finally, perform way under par as well: there are only ten teams in the Austrian Bundesliga, and FK Austria are currently 8th. The first eleven league games brought them only two wins, an unacceptable score for what is traditionally one of Austria’s greatest clubs.
The bad news is that Klaas-Jan Huntelaar is out for a month. But I’m convinced that won’t stop Ajax from doing extremely well in the group.
