Ajax - PSV in 2008 | Clinical finisher makes a name for PSV at the Johan Cruyff Arena

On 30 January 2008, PSV played the always highly charged away match in Amsterdam against Ajax. This was on Wednesday evening because the match could not be held on 16 December 2007 due to police strikes.

PSV had to do without key player Ibrahim Afellay in this match. The midfielder received his fifth yellow card of the season in the home match against Excelsior (2-1) and was therefore suspended for the meeting with the rival.

Afellay was replaced by Otman Bakkal. After seven minutes, Ajax were close to 1-0 via Luis Suarez, but the Uruguayan striker sent the ball wide of the goal of Heurelho da Silva Gomes and thus PSV narrowly escaped.

After that, there were hardly any major chances for either team, and just before halftime it was PSV who created danger down the right flank via Danko Lazovic and Jefferson Farfan, after which the ball ultimately ended up with Balázs Dzsudzsák. The Hungarian did not hesitate for a moment and shot the ball behind Maarten Stekelenburg to make it 0-1.

In the 65th minute, PSV escaped the equalizer when former PSV player Klaas-Jan Huntelaar couldn’t head the ball on target, allowing Gomes to pick it up easily. Three minutes later it was the same Gomes who kept Ajax at 1-1 by turning aside Suarez’s one-on-one chance.

This was a crucial save, as PSV closed the game five minutes later via Otman Bakkal. A throw-in by Jan Kromkamp ended up via Farfan with substitute Danny Koevermans, and Koevermans played the ball back to Bakkal, after which the midfielder fired the ball high behind Stekelenburg for the 0-2.

After this goal, PSV was hardly ever in real danger anymore, and in the end Ajax even finished the match with ten men. In stoppage time, Edgar Davids lunged in with two legs outstretched at Edison Mendez, and referee Jan Wegereef had no choice but to punish the Ajax captain with a direct red card.