Erik Ten Hag's Reaction After Ajax was Eliminated by Benfica in a Painful Way

The manager of Ajax Amsterdam, Erik Ten Hag, gave comments regarding the elimination of De Amsterdamers from the Champions League this season. What did the manager say?

Ajax Amsterdam finally had to forget their dream to qualify for the quarter-finals of the Champions League. The reason is that in the second leg match against Benfica which was held at the Johan Cruyff Arena, Wednesday (16/3) early morning WIB, De Amsterdamers lost 1-0. That means they were eliminated because they lost 2-3 on aggregate to the opponent.

Shortly after the match was over, Erik Ten Hag assessed that Ajax had actually appeared very impressive. It's just that Ten Hag admitted that his team lacked creativity so they failed to break into the opponent's goal.

"Our performance has been good. We played very well when we had the ball, it's just that the creativity side was still lacking. It's a shame just because you lose focus and you are eliminated," Ten Hag said as quoted by UEFA's official website.

On a different occasion, the Ajax captain, Dusan Tadic, was also unable to hide his disappointment. Tadic assessed that Ajax played much better than the Portuguese representative.

"We were the better team. Benfica didn't even do anything except have one free-kick," said Tadic.

"We dominated the game and we did a great job, but then in one moment... it was unbelievable."

Ajax Eliminated in a Painful Way

One of the surprises occurred in the round of 16 of the 2021/22 season. Ajax Amsterdam eliminated by Benfica.

Ajax, who was empowered during the preliminary round, was seeded as the winner over the Portuguese representative. Three weeks ago, the first leg in Lisbon ended in a 2-2 draw. Most recently, when he became the host, De Joden was beaten 0-1 by Os Encarnados at the Johan Cruyff Arena, Wednesday (16/3) early morning WIB.

Ajax coach, Erik Ten Hag said his team had controlled the ball well. They dominate. Daley Blind and his team-mates battled it out for the visitors' defense.

"Maybe it's just a lack of creativity. So it's very bitter, you lose your concentration a bit, and you're out," said Ten Hag, quoted from UEFA's official website.

Benfica's goal was created in the 77th minute. The Eagles got a free kick on the left side of the opponent's defense. Alex Grimaldo, who became the executor of sending gastric feedback into the Ajax penalty box.

The ball that came, was struck by Darwin Nunez with a header. Nunez's efforts tore the nets of Andre Onana. The public of Johan Cryuff Arena seemed not to believe that his team had conceded after gaining a number of chances.

"We were the better team today. Benfica didn't do anything but one free-kick," said home captain Dusan Tadic.

That's football. An unbelievable moment like this has the potential to happen. Tadic hoped his side would rise soon.

There is still a domestic agenda to be completed in the remainder of this season. "Of course I'm angry that we lost, but we have to stay strong together," Tadic said.

In the match that just took place, Ajax's possession of the ball reached 69 percent. The Dutch representative also had 16 total shots, but only two were on target. Meanwhile, the guest camp made threats four times. One of them is shot on target.

There are already six teams that are in the last eight of the UCL 2021/22 season. Benfica followed Atletico Madrid, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Liverpool and Manchester City.