U23 World League

La Fortaleza
Spectators: 7506 (Terracing: 5630, Seating: 1726, VIP seats: 150) Nicolas Ferre made the kick off and thus started the match. Nicolas Ferre's shot was meant for the net just under the crossbar, but Gigi Buffon read the situation well and was quickly in position to make a wonderful save in the 4th minute of play. In the 6th minute, Walery Nowacki hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. Gigi Buffon showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Nicolas Ferre in the 9th minute of the match. Wieslaw Cerocki received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 16th minute. Eske Aksel tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. La Zabaleta's Nicolas Ferre got a good chance for a goal in the 19th minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. With a little luck, Ajax's Gigi Buffon got control of the ball when Nicolas Ferre tried to sneak it across the goal line. After a defensive mix-up in La Zabaleta's zone, Dobromir Klimkiewicz stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Eske Aksel came out of the goal and Dobromir Klimkiewicz tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. With an all-out effort, La Zabaleta's Gigi Buffon threw himself towards the right post 28 minutes into the match and grabbed hold of the ball from Nicolas Ferre, which otherwise would have been placed in the net. Nicolas Ferre recieved an excellent pass in front of the goal in the 31st minute. Unfortunately, he received the ball on his off foot and could only manage a weak shot that went over the goal. In the 36th minute Walery Nowacki shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Eske Aksel saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. 37 minutes had been played when some careless play by La Zabaleta's defense caused the ball to cross the line for a corner. Tomasz Sierocki was slow to take the kick. During this time Ajax's players had a chance to rest. The audience thought a goal was coming when Andy Claes got free with Gigi Buffon in the 46th minute, but the goalkeeper managed to catch the ball with a huge effort. La Zabaleta's Eske Aksel played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Wieslaw Cerocki in the 47th minute of play. The score stood at 0-0 when the half time whistle went. Both sets of players seemed reasonably pleased with how the match was going.

Both teams looked relatively alert before the second half when the referee blew his whistle to tell Wieslaw Cerocki to make the kick off. 56 minutes into the match, Ajax's goal looked a bit too open when Nicolas Ferre came free, but Gigi Buffon reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. The referee was alert and spotted a serious foul by Nicolas Ferre during the 60th minute. The player immediately received a yellow card. Nicolas Ferre kicked well hit freekick during the 60th minute of the match. Wieslaw Cerocki received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 62nd minute. Eske Aksel tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. Nicolas Ferre recieved an excellent pass in front of the goal in the 64th minute. Unfortunately, he received the ball on his off foot and could only manage a weak shot that went over the goal. 66 minutes into the match, La Zabaleta's goalkeeper Eske Aksel had to clear away a ball on his right side after a cunning shot by Remigiusz Galaska. An unexpectedly hard shot by Nicolas Ferre in the 68th minute of play forced Ajax's goalkeeper Gigi Buffon to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. Nicolas Ferre got his second yellow card in the match during the 72nd minute which meant that he had to leave the ground. La Zabaleta's Exequiel Palacios quite brazenly broke a throw-in by Walery Nowacki, made in the 76th minute of the game. A hard shot 79 in the game by Remigiusz Galaska from a close distance when the talented Eske Aksel managed to make a qualified save. La Zabaleta's players were relieved. After having played for 84 minutes, Andy Claes managed to get in a good position for a shot on goal. La Zabaleta's supporters crossed their fingers, but Andy Claes was, after a quick turn that froze the defenders, out of balance and shot the ball just to the right of the goal. Andy Claes recieved an excellent pass in front of the goal in the 86th minute. Unfortunately, he received the ball on his off foot and could only manage a weak shot that went over the goal. Wieslaw Cerocki in the 93rdth minute had a little luck and got a chance for a shot in front of the goal. Without hesitation aimed to the right of Eske Aksel, who managed to lunge to the right direction and made a save. In the 95th minute, Remigiusz Galaska made a precise shot to the right of Eske Aksel. La Zabaleta's defense was at fault, and the scoreboard reflected the new score, 0-1. The Ajax supporters could be heard counting down the last seconds of the match. They errupted in celebration when the whistle blew, knowing Ajax would go home with victory in their luggage after a match that easily could have ended differently.