There is only pride at stake as Ajax welcome AEK Athens to the Johan Cruyff Arena for their final Group B fixture in the Europa League. Both teams have nothing to play for, although the Dutch side will be looking to maintain their recent good form and should have the upper hand in front of their fans.
It has been a disappointing European campaign for Ajax, who head into match day six of the Europa League still seeking their first win in the competition. They had made a decent start, playing out two draws before going on to suffer three straight defeats, including a 4-3 loss at Marseille last time out.
Ajax’s poor European campaign could be mostly attributed to their internal struggles earlier in the season. John van’t Schip’s men now appear to have turned a corner and head into Thursday’s clash with four wins from their last five matches across all competitions.
The Dutch giants have also rediscovered their home quality, claiming four wins in their last five matches at the Johan Cruyff Arena. They picked up a 2-1 home victory over Sparta Rotterdam in an Eredivisie fixture last weekend.
AEK Athens have also struggled in this season’s Europa League as they picked up just one win from five matches in Group B. That win came in their opening fixture as they have since unravelled, losing their last three matches, including a 1-0 home defeat to Brighton in their previous fixture.
Away from their Europa League struggles, AEK Athens have also been a bit erratic in recent weeks as they have picked up just three wins from their last six matches across all competitions. One of those wins came last weekend as they edged out Aris 1-0 in a Super League 1 fixture.
AEK Athens have also not been particularly convincing on their recent travels, with just two wins in their last five away matches. They were beaten 3-1 at Marseille in their previous Europa League away fixture.
How the bookies view it
Ajax have the upper hand among the bookies with a home win priced at 21/20 by bet365. A victory for AEK Athens is valued at 5/2 by Paddy Power while 10bet is offering odds of 3/1 for a draw.
Head to head
Ajax did the double over AEK Athens during the 2018-19 Champions League group stage, claiming a 3-0 victory at the Johan Cruyff Arena before winning 2-0 in Greece. Both teams battled to a 1-1 draw in this season’s reverse fixture back in October.
Players to watch
Brian Brobbey has caught the eye for Ajax in recent weeks, scoring four times in his last four matches across all competitions. The forward also netted a brace last time out in the Europa League and is priced at 15/8 by Paddy Power to maintain his scoring run.
Steven Zuber often features on attack for AEK Athens and could be worth keeping an eye on. The forward was on target in Athens’ previous away fixture and is priced at 6/1 by Unibet to find the net on Thursday.
Anything else catch the eye?
There were over 4.5 goals in Ajax’s previous Europa League fixture and a repeat is priced at 7/2 by BoyleSports. Over 3.5 goals could also be considered at 13/8 by bet365.
The Dutch side were on target in both halves in that fixture and Thursday’s clash could be set for a similar outturn at 7/4 with Unibet.
This UEFA Europa League match between Ajax and AEK Athens will be played on Dec 14, 2023 and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best Ajax vs AEK Athens prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.