Ziyech back to Ajax best as Chelsea dominate Spurs
Carlo Garganese
- 5 Jan 2022 16:20 CST
- 3 min read
All the talk ahead of Chelsea’s Carabao Cup semi-final against Tottenham was naturally dominated by Romelu Lukaku.
But it was a forgotten man who stole the limelight on Wednesday.
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Hakim Ziyech has never really looked like a Chelsea-level player since his big-money move from Ajax 18 months ago.
The Moroccan had been a revelation during Ajax’s famous run to the Champions League semi-finals in 2019, playing a key role in putting champions Real Madrid and Italian giants Juventus to the sword.
Like his ex-Ajax teammates Frenkie De Jong and Mathijs De Ligt, Ziyech has stagnated since leaving Holland.
He has scored only three Premier League goals this season and last, delivering five assists. For such a big team like Chelsea, that is clearly not enough output given his €40 million transfer fee.
Ziyech has never nailed down a first-team shirt but on Wednesday he finally played to the standards he set back at Ajax.
Images that precede fortunate events. 💫#CheTot pic.twitter.com/bImuqtvFBT
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) January 5, 2022
The winger produced a man-of-the-match performance in a dominant 2-0 win at Stamford Bridge as Chelsea eased the crisis of the last month.
It was Ziyech’s cross that led to Ben Davies’ own goal for Chelsea’s second and he was a thorn all night in Tottenham’s side.
Ziyech had the joint-most shots in the game with three and was first for chances created, crosses, dribbles and possession won in the final third. The 28-year-old was everywhere as Chelsea took a commanding lead into the second leg next week.
It’s somewhat ironic that the famous Champions League run with Ajax came to an end against Tottenham.
In that tie, Ajax led 2-0 only for Tottenham to heartbreakingly launch a late second-leg comeback. Ziyech and Chelsea will be hoping history doesn’t repeat itself!
