Overview
Ajax, the four-time European champions, will kick off their latest Champions League campaign by hosting the runners-up against Inter Milan in Amsterdam.
The Dutch giants are unbeaten since the beginning of the season, while Inter have traveled to Johan Cruyff Arena after two consecutive defeats. However, both teams are still in the process of rebuilding after the collapse at the end of the 2024-2025 season.
This was a bitter defeat for Ajax and former coach Francesco Farioli. They missed a golden opportunity to regain the Eredivisie before the Italian strategist left.
The victory over direct opponent PSV at the end of March helped Ajax create a 9-point gap at the top of the table. However, the decline in the final stages has caused them to lose their advantage and miss the title.
Not only did Ajax stop at the Europa League round of 16, they also lost to KNVB Beker. This means that it has been 3 years since the last time the Amsterdam team lifted a major trophy.
Before Farioli's departure, Ajax's board brought John Heiting back to lead the club. He worked as an interim coach before becoming an assistant at West Ham United and Liverpool.
Under Heiting, Ajax are still unbeaten since the beginning of the season. They won all 3 home matches but lost points twice away, most recently a 3-1 victory over PEC Zwolle.
Now, after only qualifying for the group stage once in 4 seasons since the miracle of reaching the semi-finals in 2019, Ajax will open the Champions League campaign with a reunion with Inter Milan. This is a match reminiscent of the European Cup C1 final in 1972,
At that time, the Dutch team defeated Inter in Rotterdam, but since then they have never won against the Italian team in the Champions League, and have even lost three times.
Like Ajax, Inter Milan also only finished second in the domestic league last season. They let Napoli take the lead in the Scudetto race, but the disappointment did not stop there.
After beating Barcelona in the semi-finals and setting a record of 10 wins in the Champions League, Inter collapsed completely in the final. The Milan team was beaten 5-0 by Paris Saint-Germain, ending Simone Inzaghi's reign with a bitter memory.
In his 3 years in charge, Inzaghi led Inter to 2 Champions League finals, but now the power has been given to Cristian Chivu. This is a former defender who won the European Cup with the Nerazzurri in 2010, but has very little experience in coaching at the highest level.
Under Chivu, Inter reached the knockout stage of the FIFA Club World Cup 2025, but the start of Serie A 2025-2026 was full of thorns. After a resounding 5-0 victory over Torino, they unexpectedly fell to Udinese right at San Siro, then lost in the dramatic Derby d'Italy.
Just a week ago, Inter lost 3-4 to Juventus in Turin. Despite a strong rebound to regain the lead, they still lost everything by conceding two goals in the final minutes.
Now, Inter's task is to quickly regain their spirit to start smoothly in the Champions League. This is a playground where they have been approaching the throne in recent seasons.
Personnel situation
Heiting is almost in possession of the strongest squad, except for the absence of Branco van den Boomen when the midfielder has not recovered from a back injury.
Meanwhile, Inter traveled to the Netherlands with a full force, including rookie Manuel Akanji, who just made his Serie A debut in the Derby d'Italy.
Expected lineup:
Ajax: Jaros, Gaaei, Itakura, Baas, Wijndal, Regeer, Taylor, Klaassen, Berghuis, Weghorst, Godts.
Inter Milan: Sommer, Akanji, Acerbi, Bastoni, Dumfries, Barella, Calhanoglu, Sucic, Dimarco, Thuram, Martinez.
The match between Ajax and Inter Milan takes place at 2:00 am on September 18 (Vietnam time).
