Chelsea: Let’s Meet the New Guy, His Name is Hakim Ziyech

Ajax

In August of 2016, Hakim Ziyech transferred to Ajax and signed a 5-year deal with them. The fee to bring him to the Johan Cryuff Arena was €11m. Little would Ajax know that Ziyech would go on to become one of their best players in the future.

Hakim Ziyech’s 2016/17 and 2017/18 seasons were very good. It came to the point where everyone expected him to put on a show. These were the years where he announced himself to the world as one of the best attackers. His goal-assists ratio during his time at Ajax was one of the highest in the world. Ziyech was often considered as one of the world’s most well-rounded attackers.

The 2018/19 season is where Ziyech and Ajax would globally be recognized as a great team. Ajax easily won the Eredivisie, but what they did in the Champions League is what moved them up in status.

In the round of 16, Ajax beat the defending champions, Real Madrid, in what ended up being 5-3 on aggregate. In the quarterfinals, Ziyech and Ajax went on to eliminate Cristiano Ronaldo and Juventus. Ajax was eliminated in the semifinals against Tottenham, but it was an incredible run that was stopped by an incredible comeback.

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In the first leg, Ziyech assisted what would be the only goal of the match. In the second leg, Ajax lost 3-2 after a historic hat-trick from Spurs’ Lucas Moura. Ajax’s run ended in a pang of great sadness and disbelief. But that Champions League run showed to the world they are one of the best.

Ajax’s 2019/20 Eredivisie campaign is now over and Hakim Ziyech has played his last match for the club. He was amazing for them, but he reckons that it’s time to move on to a more competitive league.