Slip-up in Split

The first chance of the match did fall to Tolu, who appeared to have got away from his direct opponent after a ball in behind, but because he waited too long to shoot, Dennis Hadžikadunić was able to recover and throw himself in front of Tolu’s effort.

In fact, that was Ajax’s only chance of the first half. Shortly before half-time, Davy Klaassen lost a duel in midfield, after which 'Bamba' was played in behind and made no mistake one-on-one with Marc ter Stegen. At that point, Ajax deserved to be behind.

Ajax did come out of the dressing room well and played with urgency shortly after the break. Klaassen eventually made it 1-1 after an excellent touch and an equally good finish inside the Hajduk Split penalty area.

For a moment, Ajax appeared to be gaining momentum, but three minutes later they had already lost it again. Following a misunderstanding between Jofre Torrents and Youri Baas, the ball fell kindly for the home side to make it 2-1. Marin Šotiček eventually found the net.

Suspended
Ajax were unable to make any real impact for the remainder of the match. Play was also suspended for around ten minutes due to fireworks being set off by the home supporters. Ajax return to action in the VriendenLoterij Eredivisie on Sunday, when they face FC Groningen. A week later, Ajax host Atalanta in the UEFA Conference League. That match kicks off at 21:00.

Hajduk Split - Ajax 2-1 (1-0)
37. Bamba 1-0
53. Klaassen 1-1
56. Šotiček 2-1

Ajax: Ter Stegen; Kehrer, Bouwman, Baas, Torrents (75. Rosa), Amrabat, Klaassen (75. Mokio), Brandt, Tsygankov (75. Leonardo), Tolu, Ouazane (75. Gloukh)