Born in the south east of Ireland, Simon put his life-long love of football to good use when he started a successful independent blog in 2010. That opened up an alternative route to a career in journalism, and having had work published across a number of sites and publications, Simon joined the staff at Spotlight Sports Group in 2018.
After Liverpool and Barcelona’s dramatic, thrill-a-minute clash at Anfield last night, Ajax and Tottenham take centre stage in the Champions League this evening, in the second leg of their Semi Final in Amsterdam.
Ajax left North London with a 1-0 win after the pulsating opening act of their double-header against Spurs last week, though the overall outcome of the tie still hangs in the balance ahead of this evening’s climax in the Dutch capital.
As always, bet365 have a range of potentially lucrative individual player specials and markets available for tonight’s game, and as usual FST have been poring over the statistics to find you the best selections available.
Check out selection of player special betting tips for this evening’s Champions League semi-final second leg tussle between Ajax and Tottenham Hotspur below:
Donny van de Beek to score anytime – 10/3
22-year old marauding midfielder Donny van de Beek has provided plenty of goalscoring thrust from deep areas for Ajax this season.
Last week’s deadlock breaking hero has scored 15 times in all competitions for the Eredivisie leaders this term, and van de Beek has a penchant for popping up with crucial goals for his team in matches of significance, as evidenced in the first leg in London.
Van de Beek registered in each of this last 2 Champions League appearances for Ajax in their pivotal skirmishes with Juventus and Tottenham respectively, and we think his sense of occasion makes him a brilliant price at 10/3 with bet365 to register anytime again this evening.
Son Heung-Min over 2.5 shots – 1/2
Tottenham supporters have placed a huge amount of the hope on Son Heung-Min’s shoulders ahead of this evening’s second leg in Amsterdam, though the South Korean international is not one to wilt under pressure.
Son missed Spurs’ 0-1 reverse to Ajax in London last week through suspension, though the club’s second top scorer this season will be restored to the starting XI at the Johan Cruijff ArenA tonight.
The fleet-footed 26-year old has averaged 2.4 attempts on goal in both the Premier and Champions League this season, though we’re tipping him to shoot his way past that average against Ajax.
In the absence of Harry Kane, Son takes on the role of Spurs’ biggest goal threat and the focal point of their attack this evening, and with that considered, we think he’s priced generously at 1/2 with bet365 to rack up over 2.5 attempts on goal.
Frenkie de Jong over 1.5 tackles – 4/9
Deep lying Ajax playmaker Frenkie de Jong’s burgeoning reputation as one of football’s most technically gifted technical players is well deserved, though his equally effective combative abilities in midfield are often overlooked.
De Jong has averaged 2.2 tackles per Champions League appearance for Ajax in 2018/19, a figure that makes him the 5th most prolific challenge maker in his team in continental competition.
The Barcelona bound 21-year old attempted a shin pad-snapping 6 tackles for Ajax in their first leg triumph in London a week ago, a total bettered only by his teammates Hakim Ziyech and Nicolás Tagliafico (7).
De Jong has in fact, made 3 tackles or more in 3 of his last 4 Champions League appearances for Ajax, and we’re backing the midfield all-rounder to play with similar bite this evening.
Danny Rose to get booked – 13/8
The front-foot aggression that Tottenham wing-back Danny Rose plays with generally allows him to perform at a consistently high level for his club, though that same antagonistic streak can often land the defender in trouble with referees.
Rose has been booked 7 times in total for Spurs this season, a total that makes him the club’s most ill-disciplined player in all competitions.
The 28-year old has been shown yellow just twice in the Champions League this term, though it’s worth noting that both cards were picked up inside Rose’s last 3 appearances in the tournament.
With goals high on Spurs’ agenda this evening, Rose should find that he has more space than usual to cover in defensive areas. That should in turn, heighten the need for last ditch tackles in his attempts to stem the Ajax counter attacks.
The factors at play in Amsterdam this evening make Rose well worth considering at 13/8 with bet365 to be shown yellow for the 8th time this season for Spurs.
Dusan Tadic over 0.5 shots on target – 4/7
Dusan Tadic raised a few eyebrows last summer when he chose to swap the Premier League for the Eredivisie in the prime years of his career, though the Serbian’s stellar campaign since his transfer has fully justified his decision.
The versatile 30-year old has rattled the net a staggering 34 times already this season for Ajax in all competitions, while his assist count for the same period is just a few shy of 20.
Tadic has been devastatingly clinical in front of goal, hitting the target with 1.3 of his 2.1 goal attempts on average in the Eredivisie and with 0.8 of 1.6 attempts per game in the Champions League.
The former Southampton star has become a talismanic figure in Amsterdam, leading a remarkably young Ajax team from the front. Tadic will again be crucial to his team’s chance of progression this evening, and with his goal scoring prowess firmly established, we think he looks well priced at 4/7 with bet365 to register over 0.5 shots on target.
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