The champions league never gets old. Every player of the beautiful game on the streets and in youth teams dream about playing in the champion’s league. Others are this close to champions league football and are gutted if they miss out on it. These are the fine lines between success and failure in this competition and its qualifiers. These are the margins that would be on the minds of Ajax and Apoel as they gear off for their second leg. The winner of this tie would most likely find themselves in the group stages of the champions league. It is a do or dies affair for both clubs.
Ajax
Despite the huge task at hand, Ajax would be happy at where they have put themselves ahead of this game. The first game required a pragmatic approach as they faced an Apoel who was looking to take advantage of playing at home. Now, they get to play the final game in front of their home fans and their stadium. That is a lot of advantage, a boost of confidence and determination in their quest to be successful. To win this game, Ajax only needs to win by any margin. A win has to be on the cards. Any other draw or scoreline that is above a goalless draw that is against their favor would see them knocked out of the competition. For them, they just have to win and Apoel would surely not roll over easily.
Apoel
Apoel just had one job and they failed at it. They had to score in their home. A single home would have turned this second tie into a pressure boiling point. However, they only mustered a goalless draw. That draw is what puts in the predicament. They need to draw and possibly score if they want to win before a penalty shootout. They would be coming up against an Ajax team who held them to a standstill in their home and surely, that would not be a very comforting thought. When they kick off on Tuesday, they would need to pull everything in their arsenal to come out victorious.
Form
Well, one thing that Ajax cannot be found fault with is their form. Having not lost a game so far and having a perfect record at their disposal, it is surely a scary time to come against them especially for Apoel who see still struggling with consistency. With two losses wedged between some wins and their last draw, they are still some way apart in terms of their form.
A win for Apoel would see them advance to the champions league while Ajax drops to the Europa League. Either way, they would each lose something precious should they lose on Tuesday. The time has come to test who deserves to play in the biggest competition in Europe and who would end up heartbroken at the end of the day.
Will it be Ajax or would it Apoel? Time would tell the outcome.
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