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Ajax have been given a major boost before their Champions League semi-final clash with Tottenham Hotspur, according to The Sun.
The Eredivisie have postponed an entire round of fixtures to allow the club time to prepare to take on Mauricio Pochettino’s men.
What’s the word?
Ajax, of course, have been one of the great underdog stories of the competition this season.
They have beaten Real Madrid and Juventus back-to-back and now come up against a Tottenham side that dumped Manchester City out of the competition in the quarter-finals.
The Sun report that Ajax were scheduled to play two days prior to them travelling to London, in an Eredivisie encounter with De Graafschap.
But the league’s powerbrokers have postponed every single fixture that weekend to give Ajax the time they need to get ready for one of the biggest matches in their modern history.
KNVB president Eric Gudde said: “We have looked at all kinds of ways to move games with Ajax progressing so far in the Champions League.
“We have presented our plans to all of the clubs. It is not ideal for everyone, I appreciate that, but this is not just helping Ajax.
“It is being done to help Dutch football as a whole because it means so much to be successful in Europe.”
Tottenham, as it stands, play West Ham United three days before the first leg, and face AFC Bournemouth just two days before the decisive second leg.
A damning indictment on the Premier League
The Premier League ought to follow the Eredivisie’s lead.
They do nothing to ensure that their clubs are well prepared in Europe and, as it stands, it would not be a surprise to see Mauricio Pochettino’s squad stretched to breaking point by the current fixture list.
One has to think that the Bournemouth game will be changed but, if it isn’t, Ajax have a major advantage.
It is not their fault, of course, that their league are exercising common sense.
Spurs, surely, will be bitterly disappointed that there is precious little chance of the Premier League following suit.