Lato: "If VCF come out strong, I'm sure they can beat Ajax"

Toni Lato is Valencia CF's 'man on the inside' in the Eredivisie, currently on loan to Dutch team PSV Eindhoven since July. The VCF Academy product thus knows about the club's next opponents in the Champions League: PSV's arch rivals, AFC Ajax.

Whilst he did not feature in 'De Topper', the fixture between PSV and Ajax held last week, Lato is aware of the strengths and weaknesses of a squad that reached the Champions League semifinals in 2018/19.

"They are going to be tough opponents and are going to demand that Valencia CF be at their best. They showed last year what they are capable of achieving," he told VCF Media.

"Valencia CF have everything necessary to win. There is a great atmosphere at Mestalla that pushes the team on during big nights. Any team, however big they might be, are going to have a bad time of it at Mestalla if the team and the fans are pressuring them," explained Lato.

"Ajax don't just play good football; they are also physical. The Eredivisie is a less competitive league than LaLiga, but it's very physical and there's contact in the playing style. There's a lot of ball work in training, but it's 'old school.' The sessions are longer, the grounds are bigger and you do a lot of running," assesses the fullback, who identifies an area in which Ajax can be hurt on Wednesday night.

"They struggle without the ball and sometimes leave very few players back on the counter."

Using his parent club's first Champions League game of the campaign as an example of their capabilities, Lato added that "If Valencia CF come out strong, like they did against Chelsea FC, and do things well, then I'm sure that they can beat Ajax. I'm predicting a 2-1 win for Valencia CF."