August 28, Kyiv, Ukraine.
In the second leg of the Champions League playoff, Ajax visited Dynamo Kyiv.
When the final whistle sounded, Yang Yang shook his head in disappointment. He was clearly deeply dissatisfied with the result, and he was not alone. Xabi Alonso and the others around him were just as frustrated.
The scoreboard showed the final result: 0–0!
Ajax had drawn with Dynamo Kyiv away from home.
Although the result allowed Ajax to advance smoothly to the Champions League Group Stage with a 3–1 aggregate victory, neither Yang Yang on the sidelines nor the Ajax players on the pitch could have been satisfied.
Reaching the Champions League Group Stage had been Ajax's long-held wish. But after the first leg, everyone at the club had already been brimming with confidence. After the second leg, however, they suddenly discovered that the players had exposed an even more serious—and frightening—problem: scoring goals.
Many people might find that strange. Ajax had won their last several matches in a row and swept aside all opposition, including a 6–0 demolition of Emmen in the Eredivisie. How could they possibly have a problem scoring?
But that was exactly what had happened!
In their away match against Dynamo Kyiv, everyone at Ajax had been in high spirits, and their performance had been excellent. They had kept Dynamo Kyiv under constant pressure throughout the match and completely dominated the game.
But despite controlling the momentum, they had struggled to score. In the end, Ajax had not scored at all.
They had taken thirty-nine shots, setting Ajax's highest single-match total in the past few seasons. Their midfield organization and attacking play had both come alive, creating chance after chance.
Thirty-nine shots—almost one attempt every three minutes. What a terrifying statistic!
So why had the final goal count