Ajax vs Celtic Betting Tips

After finishing last season a disappointing 17 points behind winners PSV in the Eredivisie, Ajax have started this campaign with all guns blazing.

They have won four of their opening five league fixtures, which puts them at the top of the Eredivisie with 13 points from a possible 15. Their only slip up was an away game against FC Twente on Saturday, which ended 2-2.

But even this can be seen as a positive result. They were 2-0 down with under half an hour left to play but managed to muster the strength to salvage a draw from the match.

This is the sort of character that they missed so dearly last season, so it’s certainly looking good for the Eredivisie giants.

They couldn’t make it through the Champions League qualification process early in the season though, with Rapid Vienna knocking them out 5-4 on aggregate and sending them to a Europa League playoff tie against Jablonec, which they duly won 1-0 over two legs.

Their 2-2 draw with Twente saw Ajax concede for the first time in seven competitive matches, and they had managed to net almost two goals per game at the other end as well, signalling a well balanced playing style.

Celtic were also knocked out of the Champions League during the qualifying period, with a playoff tie against Malmo proving beyond their abilities. They lost this 4-3 on aggregate after winning 3-2 at home but succumbing to a 2-0 defeat in Sweden.

This, coupled with their weekend defeat in Aberdeen, sees their losses tally stand at two for the season so far.

Their draw against Kilmarnock earlier in the season means they sit in 2^nd position in the Scottish Premiership, a somewhat unfamiliar position for them to be in. Aberdeen are two points ahead of them with a game in hand as well.

The home side has come out on top in this fixture in each of the three meetings in the past five years, and with Ajax in such good form at both ends of the pitch I expect that they will continue that record. Odds of 5/6 for an Ajax win look like good value as well, and I’m also backing a 2-0 correct score at 15/2.