Ghana midfielder Mohammed Kudus
Ghana midfielder Mohammed Kudus concluded his first season with Dutch giants Ajax with a 3-1 victory over Vitesse Arnhem in the Eredivisie on Sunday.
Crowned league champions with three matches to spare, the Lancers achieved a 35th Eredivisie title, an accomplishment also boosted by the efforts of Cote d’Ivoire striker Sebastien Haller, who scored on Sunday and finished the term with 11 goals and five assists, Morocco trio Zakaria Labyad, Noussair Mazraoui and Oussama Idrissi, Burkina Faso forward Lassina Traore and suspended Cameroon goalkeeper Andre Onana.
Lisandro Martinez and Antony were the other Ajax scorers on the day while Lois Openda registered Vitesse’s consolation.
After scoring in his last two matches prior to the final matchday, Kudus was handed a second consecutive starting spot, taking his total season league appearances to 17, involving eight starts, four goals and three assists.
He 20-year-old joined the side in a five-year deal from Danish outfit Nordsjaelland last season.
After a fine start to the season, he suffered an injury setback in October which condemning him to the sidelines until January. On his return, he suffered a relapse, forcing him back to the treatment room for one more month.
With Ajax also wining the Dutch Cup, the Ghanaian ends his debut campaign in the Netherlands with two titles.
While Erik ten Hag’s outfit finished 16 points clear atop the Eredivisie table to qualify for next season’s Champions League, PSV Eindhoven, with Ivory Coast midfielder Ibrahim Sangare, placed second to book a ticket for the Champions League qualifying round.
AZ Alkmaar, with Morocco striker Zakaria Aboukhlal, have booked a spot for the Euefa Conference League qualifiers.
Vitesse, meanwhile, occupy the fourth position, a slot that will see Algeria striker Oussama Darfalou, Morocco star Oussama Tennane and Nigerian forward Hillary Gong Chukwah play in the Europa League, the same as fifth-placed Feyenoord (Alio Badara Balde of Senegal), sixth-positioned Utrecht (Benaissa Benamar and Mimoun Mahi, both of Morocco) and seventh-spotted Goningen (Ahmed El Messaoudi and Mohamed El Hankouri, both of Morocco).
ADO Den Hag and VVV Venlo, on the other hand, have been relegated, condemning Moroccan midfielder Younnes Mohktar to the Eerste Divisie for next season.