Jeroen Kapteijns spotlights a missed foul on Kodai Sano, arguing the PSV midfielder was wrongly booked after Ajax captain Davy Klaassen initiated contact in the heated clash.
The controversy surrounding the refereeing in Ajax-PSV has taken another turn, with De Telegraaf journalist Jeroen Kapteijns highlighting what he believes was an incorrect yellow card shown to PSV midfielder Kodai Sano.
Much of the attention following PSV’s 3-1 victory over Ajax has centred on Ruben van Bommel’s challenge on Aaron Bouwman. The PSV winger was shown a yellow card by referee Sander van der Eijk, a decision that surprised several analysts and supporters.
However, Kapteijns believes another incident from the heated Johan Cruijff Arena clash has received far less attention.
That moment involved Sano and Ajax captain Davy Klaassen. The Japanese midfielder was booked after being adjudged to have fouled the Ajax midfielder, but Kapteijns argues that the decision was the wrong way around.
Kapteijns: “Klaassen puts his foot on Sano’s leg”
The PSV watcher shared a video of the incident on X, accompanying it with a detailed explanation of his interpretation, as relayed by PSV Inside.
“More went wrong in terms of refereeing in Ajax-PSV. Here Sano is shown a yellow card while it is actually Klaassen who, after playing the ball, puts his foot on Sano’s leg. Afterwards, Sano does touch Klaassen’s shoe with the underside of his left boot, but that means absolutely nothing and the first contact was therefore from Klaassen to Sano.”
According to Kapteijns, the sequence shows that Klaassen made the initial contact after playing the ball, with Sano subsequently making only minimal contact with the Ajax captain’s boot.
The incident has largely disappeared from the wider discussion surrounding the match, overshadowed by the controversy involving Van Bommel and Bouwman.
No Further Investigation Into Van Bommel Incident
Meanwhile, Van Bommel does not face a lengthy suspension following his collision with Bouwman.
De Telegraaf journalist Mike Verweij reported on X that there would be no preliminary investigation by the public prosecutor for professional football into the incident.
“As expected, no preliminary investigation is being paid for by the public prosecutor for professional football into Ruben van Bommel's action on Aaron Bouwman during #Ajax-#PSV. The situation has already been (incorrectly) assessed by referee Sander van der Eijk and VAR Pol van Boekel.”
The decision comes after the incident generated significant debate following the match. Van Bommel was shown a yellow card, while VAR Pol van Boekel did not intervene.
The challenge subsequently became the subject of strong reactions, including online threats directed at the PSV player. Columnist Hugo Borst even described the incident in extremely severe terms, while Ajax supporter and columnist Henk Spaan criticised PSV head coach Peter Bosz for his explanation of the incident.
As quoted by PSV Inside, Spaan wrote in Het Parool:
“He again played the village pastor with the soothing analysis: He wanted to protect himself. Get lost, coach. The corks gave way as a result of a short circuit in the head.”
He also referred to the fact that Bouwman was taken to hospital after the collision.
PSV leave Amsterdam with three points
Amid the controversy, PSV secured an important 3-1 victory in Amsterdam. Ricardo Pepi opened the scoring, Lutsharel Geertruida restored PSV’s lead just before half-time with a spectacular strike, and substitute Esmir Bajraktarevic sealed the points in stoppage time.
The result handed Peter Bosz’s side the first blow in the latest chapter of the rivalry, while Ajax were left to reflect on both their performance and a night dominated by heated incidents and refereeing debate.
Kapteijns’ assessment of the Sano incident adds another layer to that discussion, suggesting that the officiating in Amsterdam deserves scrutiny beyond the much-discussed Van Bommel challenge.
