Ajax - AZ Betting Preview: Expect goals at both ends in the Johan Cruijff Shield

This fixture has provided plenty of entertainment in recent seasons, and Al Hain-Cole expects no different this time considering the two sides' goal-scoring exploits
After winning their third successive Eredivisie title last season, Ajax will be looking to end a run of three consecutive Johan Cruijff Shield defeats when they take on AZ this Saturday.

Frank de Boer’s men have lost out on the trophy to PSV and Twente in the last three seasons, but are heavy 4/11 (1.36) favourites with William Hill to take home the silverware for the eighth time in their history this time out.In contrast, The Cheese Farmers came out on top in their only previous appearance in this fixture back in 2009, and are available at 11/2 (6.50) to maintain their 100 per cent record with victory four years on.

These sides have drawn three of their last six encounters, and you can get odds of 10/3 (4.33) on them taking this one into extra-time with a stalemate after 90 minutes.

The Netherlands’ showpiece curtain raiser between the league winners and KNVB Cup holders has produced some entertaining spectacles in recent years, and should be set to continue that trend when this pair come together at the Amsterdam ArenA.

The last seven meetings between these sides have produced an impressive 27 goals, and if their respective pre-season results are anything to go by, then we should be in for more of the same.While de Amsterdammers have scored 19 goals in six friendlies, their opponents have hit home a mouth-watering 23 in just their last four, so a high-scoring encounter certainly seems likely when they come head to head.

A bet on both teams to score would have paid out in five of the last six clashes between these opponents, and therefore offers lucrative value at odds of 4/6 (1.67) on Saturday.

Although de Boer has firmly established Ajax at the pinnacle of Dutch football in his three years at the helm, his record against AZ is not particularly impressive, having only beaten the bogey side once out of the last six attempts.

With these games usually fiercely contested, odds of 12/5 (3.40) seem decidedly generous on the visitors winning either half, particularly considering that bet would have paid out in each of the last six encounters, and are therefore far too good to turn down. 

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