AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Ajax Amsterdam's teenaged captain Matthijs de Ligt described their semi-final exit from the Champions League as a "nightmare" after the Dutch side were undone by Lucas Moura's 96th minute strike for Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday.
“It’s a nightmare, like a dream that went bad,” the 19-year-old told Dutch television shortly after the 3-2 home loss saw Tottenham Hotspur through to the final against Liverpool in Madrid on June 1. Spurs won on the away goals rule.
Ajax let slip a 2-0 halftime lead, and 3-0 aggregate advantage, as Spurs came storming back in the second half.
“We played well in the first half, we had it all our way,” he added.
“We didn’t keep up the same pressure in the second half.
“We gave silly goals away. We were so close to the final … and then the ball goes in. Unbelievable.”
Moura squeezed in a shot six minutes into stoppage time to complete his hat-trick and a stunning comeback for the Premier League side.
(Reporting by Mark Gleeson; editing by Pritha Sarkar)