PSV wins the Johan Cruijff Schaal for the 12th time in club history. In Amsterdam, the team was 4-0 too strong for Ajax in a great match.
Masterclass Madueke
In the warm up, PSV entered the field under a loud whistling concert from the home supporters. Shortly after kickoff, however, it was the PSV fans who were allowed to sing louder. Noni Madueke was handed the ball, accelerated himself and shot very purposefully into the short corner, a dream start for the club with an early 0-1. Ajax did not leave it at that and immediately upped the tempo. The PSV defense was put under pressure but an excellent reflex by Joël Drommel kept the goal empty. The home team looked to equalize in the first quarter of an hour, but a goal by Sébastien Haller was disallowed for offside by VAR.
Football fight
There was an incredible fighting spirit on the pitch, with an overwhelming number of quick passes, runs and solid tackles. In midfield, the strength of Ibrahim Sangaré and the technique of Marco van Ginkel were important weapons in the play forward. Eran Zahavi made another clever attempt with his left leg, but his effort went over the Amsterdam goal. After half an hour of play, the Israeli delivered the ball to Madueke, who confirmed his blood form. The Englishman again proved unstoppable for the last line of the Amsterdammers. A gear, a hooded move, a shot and a goal. Just before halftime, things got a lot tougher for Ajax. A hard foul by Tagliafico on André Ramalho was punished by the referee with a red card.
Freedom, space and goal attempts.
PSV started the second half with a strategic change. Jordan Teze and Yorbe Vertessen came into the field for Phillipp Mwene and Eran Zahavi. A man less at Ajax stood Madueke in good stead. The extra space on the field of play allowed the Englishman to find even more freedom to strike out, resulting in a nice shot into the far corner that only just graced the goal. Cody Gakpo also made a worthy effort in the same way. Substitute Vertessen proved to be a dangerous weapon in this space with his speed. After a clever sprint, he delivered the ball to Gakpo, who passed to Van Ginkel. However, the captain failed to pass goalkeeper Pasveer.
Lord and master
PSV remained lord and master on the Amsterdam pitch. The speed of Gakpo and Vertessen went across the grass like a whirlwind. The Belgian passed the ball off to the Eindhoven native and, after a fine one-two, Vertessen managed to finish well himself. The mighty win was not yet complete. Because Mario Götze also wanted to crown his strong match with a goal, and he did. The German curled the ball into the far corner in phenomenal fashion. There was no more rebuttal for Ajax. The match was on lock and key. Van Ginkel also tried to get his goal, but again he hit Pasveer. Despite not getting on the scoresheet, the captain was the one to lift the Johan Cruijff Schaal on behalf of PSV. The twelfth time this prize has gone to Eindhoven.
