Amsterdam (AFP)
The nuggets of Lille against the absolute model of training centers: Lille is back by the big door Tuesday in the Champions League, in the den of Ajax Amsterdam, which dazzled Europe last season.
The Dutch club has been producing rough diamonds for decades and the last generation of them shone last spring by going to the doors of the C1 final, eliminated by Tottenham in half, after giving the lesson to Real Madrid in eighths of Final then Juventus Turin in quarters.
The task of Losc, absent from C1 for 7 years, and who has won his European ticket ending to the general surprise of Paris SG, looks arduous at the Arena, the legendary speaker of Ajax.
"There are no favorites, Lille are a very good team, do not underestimate them," warned coach Erik ten Hag.
Lille, uncompromising at home since the start of the season of Ligue 1 (3 wins), will have to correct their shortcomings outside.
With two defeats and two exclusions in Amiens (1-0) and Reims (2-0), players Christophe Galtier have not yet found the solution to reproduce from their bases the good impressions left at the Pierre-Mauroy stadium.
The Dogues do not seem to suffer too much from the departure this summer of their best player Nicolas Pépé, sparkling last season.
- Ikoné on its momentum? -
With the replacement on the right wing of Jonathan Ikoné (21 years), they still have a wisp ready to blast the opponents defenses. The native of Bondy, who has just celebrated his first two selections and his first goal with the France team, wants to continue its momentum and seems cut to forget his former teammate.
As for the new forward, the Nigerian Victor Osimhen (20), he has already won the hearts of northerners by scoring five goals in five games. Very fast and efficient, it adapts perfectly to the transitional game of Lille who has been wreaking havoc for a year.
"We go to Ajax to win, it's a very difficult team to play but I think we have the qualities to win," said the ambitious striker Lille.
Despite the inexperience of its workforce in the competition, that only three players have already played (Renato Sanches, Loïc Remy and Jérémy Pied), Lille has arguments to argue to bring a positive result. Especially since Ajax is no longer the same team as six months ago.
The two most promising players, central defender Matthijs de Ligt (19) and middle Frenkie de Jong (22) left, the first at Juventus and the second in Barcelona, filling the boxes but weakening the workforce.
- Ajax already competitive -
To be immediately operational, Ajax, forced to go through the preliminary rounds to reach the group stage, had to recruit. If the young American side Sergino Dest (18 years), out of his training center, is regularly aligned, it is far from the Netherlands that the club is mainly going to prospect.
Aged 21, Argentine defender Lisandro Martinez and Mexican midfielder Edson Alvarez, each recruited in their home country, have taken over. If they do not bring all the guarantees, especially in the defensive aspect, this does not prevent Ajax, first in the league with 4 wins and 1 draw, to be already competitive.
Remained despite the solicitations, the Brazilian winger David Neres (22 years) also represents a serious threat. With the arrival of Romanian midfielder Razvan Marin (23) and Dutch international striker Quincy Promes, Ajax has mostly kept its trademark: to develop the most comfortable elements with the ball together for dominate their opponents through play
Lille is warned: it will take a lot of running and know how to suffer to get by ...
© 2019 AFP