Champions League 2018/19: 3 reasons why Tottenham beat Ajax

#3 Ajax were unlucky

Ajax were unlucky over the two legs, with Hakim Ziyech hitting the post tonight

As great as this victory for Spurs was, it must be said that Ajax were a fantastic side who were largely unlucky over the two legs. Not only did they outplay Tottenham in the first half of both games, but they could’ve scored far more than they actually did, and tonight in particular saw Spurs ride their luck at times, being far too loose at the back on numerous occasions.

Not only did Ajax open them up far too easily from a set-piece for Matthijs de Ligt’s early header, with some slack marking from Kieran Trippier to blame, but Trippier and Victor Wanyama also switched off badly for Hakim Ziyech’s second. If those were Tottenham’s only defensive errors tonight then that would’ve been one thing, but Ajax also had even more chances.

Hugo Lloris had to make a couple of immense saves; Dusan Tadic flashed the ball across the goal but couldn’t quite find the net, and Ziyech also struck the post in the dramatic second-half, a moment that went largely forgotten once Moura’s hat-trick was completed. Did the better side over the two legs win this tie? Probably not, but Pochettino won’t care – sometimes you need luck in football and Spurs got it tonight.