Ajax find themselves in a precarious position heading into the final matchday of the revamped league phase of the UEFA Europa League, needing a result against Galatasaray at the Johan Cruijff ArenA on Thursday to guarantee their progression into the play-offs.
Many had anticipated that the Dutch side would have wrapped up their fate last week with three points over Latvia’s RFS, but the minnows claimed claimed a 1-0 victory on home soil courtesy of an Adam Markhiyev goal.
But now Ajax’s fight for safety has intensified, and Francesco Farioli finds his side needing a result against an unbeaten Galatasaray side that he expects will pose “a big challenge for us.”
“Galatasaray have a great team,” he told reporters in his pre-match press conference on Wednesday. “They dominate in the league and have been working with the same core of players for several years, including Fernando Muslera and Lucas Torreira. I’ve also worked with some of their players, like Berkan Kutlu. It’ll be a big change for us against Galatasaray so we have to be at our best.”
Farioli spent three years of his career in Türkiye, coaching in Karagümrük and at Alanyaspor before making the move to OGC Nice in 2023. The 35-year-old expressed: “I still fill a connection with the country, and I enjoy watching the Turkish league. On weekends, I watch matches of the clubs I worked at […] so I really still feel something with Türkiye.”
Thursday’s clash comes just days before the latest instalment of die Klassieker, the Netherlands’ most prestigious footballing rivalry that will see Ajax host Feyenoord in the Eredivisie.
Ajax have lost just twice in their domestic league this season and sit four points behind PSV Eindhoven – well clear of Feyenoord, who find themselves in fourth and nine points behind de Godenzonen.
But Farioli made clear that he has not thought about the weekend’s league clash yet, insisting that “we are looking on a match-by-match basis so the focus is really on Galatasaray, not with Feyenoord just yet.”
‘In the most ideal world, Rensch would still have played here. We still have a void at the right-back position now. Youri Regeer is a player who can play in many positions, including as a back. But I think he can function best in midfield.’