Manchester United’s last 16 Champions League exit dominated headlines on Tuesday night. However elsewhere, Ajax also suffered a surprise exit from the competition at the hands of Benfica.
The Dutch champions were favourites to progress into the quarter-finals after securing a 2-2 draw in the first-leg away in Benfica. They were the better side in that game and had the better of the action for much of the second-leg back in Amsterdam. However, a Darwin Nunez strike late into the second half sent the visitors into the next round.
Ajax manager Erik ten Hag has been one of the long-time candidates tipped to be the next permanent United manager. However, there’s a chance his side’s premature exit from the Champions League could have harmed his prospects of landing that role, with United officials eager to avoid a repeat of Tuesday’s failures under any new regime.
