Calvin Bassey wins Player of the Match after fine display in Ajax win over Nijmegen

By Wale Mustapha

Nigerian defender Calvin Bassey put up a solid performance in Ajax 1-0 victory over NEC Nijmegen in an Eredivise 1-0 win over Nijmegen at Amsterdam Arena.

The historic victory which was Ajax’s 1500 in the league history saw Bassey claiming the Man of the Match prize for his outstanding performance.

The Super Eagles defender has been heavily criticized for Ajax’s miserable run and near frozen out after but made his way back to John Heitinga starting line up after helping the team reached the Dutch Cup semifinal during the week.

Bassey was named the Man of the Match in the 1-0 win on Sunday, earning a rating of 7.9 after successfully make 3 tackles, 1 interception and completed 83% of his passes.

NEC Nimenjen held Ajax to a goaless first half despite the hosts dominating most part of it before the latter found the breakthrough in the 52nd minutes as Ghana’s Mohammed Kudus scored his 10th league goal of the season.

The hosts went in search of a second but could not break their visitors as they held on and remained unbeaten in 12 league games, last suffering a defeat at home to PSV in November. The win was also their 1500 win in the Eredivisie.