Ajax release furious statement as fan antics see match abandoned after just six minutes

Ajax’s match against Groningen was abandoned after just six minutes following a firework display in the stands.

The Eredivisie match at the Johan Cruyff Arena had kicked off at 7pm on Sunday.

Getty

However, the referee was forced to take the players off the pitch after being unable to guarantee their safety.

It followed an eruption behind the goal as a series of fireworks were set off as part of a choreographed pyro display.

Ajax fans are understood to have been honouring a fellow supporter who passed away earlier this month.

The match was initially delayed after the players left the field before the officials made the decision to abandon the game.

Grounds for concern

Following the incident, Ajax released a furious statement on social media condemning the behaviour of their fans.

In a post on X, the club wrote: “Ajax finds it downright scandalous what happened in the stadium tonight.

“We offer our apologies to anyone who has been harmed by this in any way whatsoever.

“The safety of spectators and players has been put in danger. That is unacceptable.

“We explicitly distance ourselves from this misconduct. Fireworks do not belong in the stadium.

“The spectators who were in the section of the stadium in question were searched.

AFP

“Dogs were also deployed to detect fireworks, both in the stadium before it opened and at the entry of the spectators.

“In addition, other preventive measures were taken. Despite this, we were unable to prevent this situation.

“We will of course study the camera footage to try to identify the perpetrators and, in addition, investigate in other ways who is responsible for this.

“If that leads to the identification of perpetrators, we will take appropriate measures.”

In a later post, the club confirmed the match will resume on Tuesday afternoon, with kick-off scheduled for 2.30pm.

The match will be played behind close doors with no supporters inside the stadium.

AFP

It had been goalless in Amsterdam when the match was abandoned by the referee.

The postponement leaves Ajax and Groningen in sixth and eighth place respectively, with the two sides level on 20 points after 13 matches.

Ajax are currently without a permanent manager after sacking John Heitinga earlier this month.

His former assistant Fred Grim has since taken caretaker charge of the club.

The Dutch giants are already 16 points adrift of league leaders PSV along with making an awful start to their Champions League campaign.

Ajax have lost each of their opening five matches in the competition following their defeat to Benfica on Tuesday.

It leaves them bottom of the league stage standings having scored just one goal so far.