Ajax Shake Up XI for Fortuna Sittard After PSV Setback

Ajax travel to Fortuna Sittard with a point to prove in the VriendenLoterij Eredivisie, and Míchel has not tiptoed into this one. After the 3-1 loss to PSV, the coach has ripped up parts of his team sheet and handed out two starting debuts in a bid to spark an immediate reaction.

Marc ter Stegen takes his place in goal in Sittard, anchoring a reshaped back four. On the right, Anton Gaaei gets the nod, while Thilo Kehrer comes into the centre of defence. He replaces Aaron Bouwman, who is still recovering from the heavy challenge by Ruben van Bommel last week. Youri Baas lines up alongside Kehrer, with Caio Henrique starting at left-back.

The changes don’t stop there. Sofyan Amrabat, who only made his first appearance off the bench against PSV, now steps straight into the starting XI. He is joined in midfield by Jorthy Mokio and Julian Brandt as Ajax look for more control and bite in the middle of the pitch. That reshuffle pushes Davy Klaassen down to the bench for this one.

Out wide, Steven Berghuis keeps his place on the right and gets another chance to make a statement, while Oliver Edvardsen starts on the left flank. Through the middle, Tolu Arokodare leads the line for the visitors from Amsterdam, tasked with turning this new-look setup into goals.