After a packed schedule, the day is almost over for the trio. But not before we come together in the press room at De Toekomst. "Is this about the upcoming Future Cup or ours?" Ünüvar asks at the start. "Because otherwise we'll give you a few names for the fans to watch," Johnson adds. That comes later.
Best tournament
First, back to edition number twelve in 2024. Goalkeeper El Hani kicks things off. "Out of my time at Ajax, this is the best tournament I've played in. I only have good memories of it." Ünüvar nods. "It turned into a tournament that couldn't have been better. We won every prize and didn't lose a single match. It doesn't get better than that."
The opening match for last year's Ajax U17 was against Manchester City: a giant and a debutant. "We had to get used to it a bit, you could really feel that. It was never that busy on Saturdays. We went 0-1 down. But in the second half, you saw us start to play our football and things ended well," says Ünüvar, who scored during the eventual 3-1 win.
"It was special," says El Hani as he watches the footage of the Manchester City match. "Everyone was cheering for us. I'd never experienced that before at a tournament. You can also hear the noise when Emre scores. That makes it even more special. And on top of that, it was the first match at home against Manchester City; it was special."
Johnson shines
In their second group match, the team from Amsterdam only managed a 1-1 draw against FK Partizan and had to beat partner club CF Pachuca on day two. We roll the footage of the match against the Mexicans. The trio starts laughing. "Aura," says El Hani when he sees Johnson scoring brilliantly. "That was my first goal of the season. What do I feel when I see this? Mostly flashbacks, because they’re such great memories. I’d love to be out there again," says Johnson.
A visible sparkle appears in the midfielder's eyes, who also scored the 3-0 in that match. "The header. That was easy. The funny thing is, I'd never scored twice in a match before. And then it happens in the Future Cup, of all places. I still watch those goals often," Johnson admits honestly.
"That touch after he beats the player makes the goal," says Ünüvar as we replay Johnson's first goal. "He controls it perfectly right away, that's really impressive." Ajax beat CF Pachuca 3-0 and qualified for the semi-finals. "Playing against teams like that is really different. There's a big contrast with European sides. They give their all in every duel. I prefer playing against European teams, to be honest. It’s just different."
El Hani was crucial in penalty shootout
On day three, another great match-up was on the cards for Ajax: Ajax vs. Paris Saint-Germain. No goals were scored in regular time, so penalties had to decide the outcome. El Hani became the hero, saving the first two penalties from the French side. "At first, I wanted to go to the corner, but I saw that he paused, so I paused too," he says about his first save. "It was a good decision, because he shot it straight down the middle. I tried to distract him, and because I stood still, he got stressed."
For the second one, the keeper did go to the corner. "That's right. I did it because his run-up was really fast. In the match I saw he had a good shot, so I expected him to strike it hard into the far corner. Well, it worked out," he says with a proud smile.
"Penalty killer," Johnson whispers. "Am I a penalty killer?" the keeper laughs. "Maybe they'll call me that because of that shootout, but I haven't saved many penalties yet. I'm just glad it happened here. What I often do is scan during the match to see how someone plays. A technical player like the first from Paris Saint-Germain, I expected something like that from him."
Then-15-year-old Ünüvar sent Ajax U17 into the final against FK Partizan. They had already seen off Anderlecht in the semi-final. "We didn't expect to face them. Of course, it's easier to prepare since you've already played them, but I would have rather played against Anderlecht," says Johnson. "Yeah, me too," Ünüvar adds. "It's a tournament and you want to play against as many different opponents as possible."
'We had to win'
In front of a packed sports complex, Johnson broke the deadlock in the final. "Yeah, yeah," he says modestly. "My third of the tournament. I got to play a bit higher up the pitch that match because Sean (Steur) played as a number ten. That made it easier for me to score. After that goal, I wanted to celebrate, but I got pushed to the ground," he laughs. "So I couldn't do a celebration."
Steur then added Ajax's second, and that was enough for a 2-1 win over the debutants from Serbia. "I did feel the pressure when we walked out for the final," Johnson admits. "It's our tournament, in Amsterdam. We had to win." Watching the celebration footage with the trophy makes El Hani smile. "It's great and brings back such good memories. Personally, I look back on a fantastic tournament, especially the semi-final."
"We went into the tournament to win it. And we did. We completed the Future Cup. Of course, I also wanted to win the top scorer title, as a striker. But if I couldn't, it's just brilliant that Jinairo won it," Ünüvar says, nodding to his left.
Johnson won everything: the Future Cup, (joint) top scorer, and player of the tournament. "It feels great. That photo with all the trophies is hard, yeah. I still think about it often, and the trophies are proudly displayed in my room. It was a fantastic tournament."
Just like in the previous edition, special rules will be used again this year, such as: effective playing time, the self-pass, and kicking or dribbling the ball back in from the sidelines. Last year, it especially took some getting used to for the Ajax players. "The game doesn't give you a chance to rest. That's quite different to normal. I think effective playing time is a good rule. No one can waste time," says Johnson.
Ünüvar tips the fans
As the conversation comes to an end, we ask the boys what the Future Cup means to them. Ünüvar is full of praise. "Everything that comes with it: big international teams coming, the fans, the buzz. It's an amazing platform to showcase yourself. I think if you ask lads who played five years ago, they'd say the Future Cup is a highlight of their academy years."
The striker also has advice for the players and fans ahead of the upcoming edition. "Just enjoy it. In youth football, you'll probably never play in front of so many people again. As a team, it's important to stay true to yourself. Play your game and keep doing the same things, even if you go behind," he says to the players. And who should the fans keep an eye on? "Pharell Nash," says Johnson. "But also keep an eye on Sesynijo Tilborg and Mark Engel," Ünüvar concludes with a smile.
