Ajax looked strong from the opening whistle, especially on the attack. Even so, the first goal came at the other end after Olympique Marseille was awarded a penalty via Ismaïla Sarr. Pierre-Emerick Aubamayang unwrapped the present and made it 1-0.
Ajax immediately had an answer. After a lovely attack with several players, Brian Brobbey was the final stop. He started the one-two with Steven Berghuis and took the shot himself into the near corner.
Although Ajax seemed to have the match under control, they still went 2-1 down after a corner. Chancel Mbemba Mangulu headed it into the mesh and left Diant Ramaj with no chance. Once again, the home team could not enjoy their lead for long. As with the 1-1 goal, the Berghuis/Brobbey duo provided another equaliser just five minutes later. And this time too, it was ultimately Brobbey's shot that made it 2-2. He neatly turned away from his opponent in the penalty area and jabbed the equaliser behind Paul Lopez.
Just after half time, Ajax was faced with another disappointment. Jonathan Clauss made a rush on the right wing and found Aubameyang in the penalty area. Because the ball came slightly behind him, the striker tried a bicycle kick. With success: 3-2.
Then it went from bad to worse for Ajax. After a stiff foul at the sideline by Berghuis, the Ajax player was given a yellow card. With the intervention of VAR, his yellow card was converted to red.
Even with ten men, Ajax was still able to equalise. After a measured cross from Kristian Hlynsson, Chuba Akpom found the goal with a sharp header. The Amsterdam squad looked like they would bring home a draw, but conceded a fourth goal in the closing minutes. After a high cross, Ramaj didn't have a firm grip on the ball. When he tried to recover, the German keeper committed a foul. Aubameyang converted the resulting penalty, which determined the final score: 4-3.
Olympique Marseille - Ajax 4-3 (2-2)
09. Aubameyang 1-0
10. Brobbey 1-1
26. Mbemba 2-1
30. Brobbey 2-2
47. Aubameyang 3-2
79. Akpom 3-3
90+3. Aubameyang 4-3
Ajax: Ramaj; Gaaei, Rensch, Hato, Sosa (77. Martha); Tahirović (90+4. Banel), Taylor (77. Akpom), Berghuis; Forbs (46. Hlynsson), Brobbey (90+7. Salah-Eddine), Bergwijn
