'Ajax will even finish seventh and miss out on a place in European competition’
Ajax will even finish seventh and miss out on a place in European competition. Every day on Voetbalzone, we put forward three claims about the top Dutch clubs. In addition, teams outside the traditional top three also receive regular attention. Ajax suffered a defeat against FC Twente (1-2) last weekend and saw the Tukkers take over fourth place. Do you think Ajax will slip further down the VriendenLoterij Eredivisie table and miss out on European football? Leave your opinion in the comments!Ajax played at home against rivals FC Twente last Saturday and failed to pick up any points. The defeat led to a major shake-up in the VriendenLoterij Eredivisie table: FC Twente have overtaken Ajax and are now in fourth place, which entitles them to qualify for the Europa League.Although the Amsterdam side, on 48 points, are just two points behind FC Twente, Ajax’s remaining fixtures are far from straightforward. After two away matches against Heracles Almelo and NAC Breda, Ajax must play their final three matches against national champions PSV, FC Utrecht and sc Heerenveen. The latter two are in a fierce battle for the play-off spots for European football.Utrecht are in ninth place, one point behind Sparta Rotterdam (41), who currently occupy the final play-off spot. Ron Jans’s side are a real bogey team for Ajax, who have won just once in the last five meetings between the clubs. The Utrecht side are also in good form, having lost just two of their last ten league matches. These were narrow defeats against PSV (4-3) and Feyenoord (0-1).Alongside Utrecht, Heerenveen are also on an impressive run in the VriendenLoterij Eredivisie. The Frisian club is unbeaten in five consecutive matches and sits seventh in the league, just four points behind Ajax. Earlier this season, Óscar García’s side failed to get past Heerenveen, with the match ending 1-1 at the Johan Cruijff ArenA. Heerenveen can seal Ajax’s fate in the final round of fixtures at the Abe Lenstra Stadium and send the club into the play-offs.Should Ajax end up in the play-offs, the club will turn its attention to the cup final, which takes place on Sunday 19 April. NEC will face AZ, who currently sit in sixth place. The cup winner qualifies directly for the Europa League.In this way, AZ could avoid the play-offs. A cup win for the Alkmaar side could, given the recent results of the North Holland derby, be beneficial for Ajax, who last beat AZ in 2021.
