Ajax continue their pre-season preparations with an encounter against United Arab Emirates outfit Al-Wasl at Sportpark De Lok on Thursday.
While the Eredivisie giants are gearing up for their fourth friendly of the summer, this contest will represent the first match of pre-season for Al-Wasl.
Match preview
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After beginning the Francesco Farioli era with a 1-0 friendly defeat to fellow Eredivisie side PEC Zwolle at the beginning of this month, Ajax have since responded by beating Sint-Truiden and Rangers in their next two pre-season matches.
Four days after cruising to a 4-0 win over Sint-Truiden, Ajax secured a 2-1 victory against Rangers in the Netherlands last Saturday, courtesy of first-half strikes from Kian Fitz-Jim and Branco van den Boomen.
Ajax endured one of their worst domestic seasons in the club's history in 2023-24, finishing fifth and a staggering 35 points behind champions PSV Eindhoven, and ex-Nice boss Farioli, 35, is now tasked with rebuilding a squad capable of challenging for top-flight glory as well as make progress in European competition.
The Dutch giants will look to extend their winning run when they face Al-Wasl on Thursday and Olympiacos on Friday in their final two friendly matches before they prepare for their first competitive fixture of the new season in the Europa League second qualifying round against Vojvodina on July 25.
Al-Wasl, meanwhile, are preparing for their first friendly fixture since being crowned champions of the UAE Pro League for the eighth time in their history last season.
The Emperor won their first title for 17 years after winning 21, drawing four and losing just one of their 26 league games to finish nine points clear of their nearest challengers Shabab Al-Ahli.
Managed by Serbia Milos Milojevic, Al Wasl will endeavour to retain their top-flight crown in 2024-25 and have begun their preparations for the new season with a week-long training camp in the Netherlands.
Al-Wasl will test their mettle against Ajax in their one and only pre-season friendly currently listed in their schedule; further warm-up matches are expected to follow, though, before they begin the defence of their UAE Pro League title away against Kalba on August 22.
Team News
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Ajax boss Farioli named a strong starting lineup in the victory over Rangers last time out and the Italian is set to call upon a number of his senior stars once again on Thursday.
Diant Ramaj, Devyne Rensch, Kenneth Taylor, Jordan Henderson and Chuba Akpom are among those who could feature in some capacity, but teenage goalkeeper Tommy Setford will not be involved as he is allegedly close to joining Arsenal.
As for Al-Wasl, Milojevic is set to give several of his first-team players run-outs as they bid to build up their match fitness following a week-long training programme.
Switzerland international Haris Seferovic, who scored 15 goals in his debut season for the club in 2023-24, could lead the line, while the likes of Fabio Lima, Adama Diallo, Nicolas Gimenez and Ali Saleh are all in contention to face Ajax.
We say: Ajax 2-0 Al-Wasl
Although Al-Wasl were a formidable side on the domestic front last season, it is difficult to back against Ajax in this contest, considering that the Dutch giants will likely name a strong lineup and already have plenty of minutes under their belts in pre-season.
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