Never mind the gaping difference in budgets; never mind the fairytale narrative that has captivated Europe. Ajax could not beat Juventus but in one sense they achieved what they set out to do. They made this a clash of equals, just like the European Cup finals the sides contested in 1973 and 1996, and will be far from cowed by going again in Turin on Tuesday.

Advantage Barcelona as Manchester United’s Luke Shaw scores own goal Read more

Cristiano Ronaldo’s emphatic header, the last action of the first half, appeared to be the kind of ruthless, ice-veined moment Juve contrive like nobody else. But David Neres finished brilliantly within moments of the restart and what followed confirmed the impression that Ajax are now snugly comfortable in their own skin when these nights come around. They could have won it in an intoxicating second period; they might equally have lost when Douglas Costa arrowed a low shot against a post near the end and the only certainty, when everyone had gathered breath, was that the second leg has the ingredients to be a classic.

“One-all at home is not the outcome you hope for, but it was a good result,” said the Ajax manager, Erik ten Hag. “Everything is still possible.” It did not feel that way when, at the end of an opening 45 minutes in which both sides missed half-chances, Ronaldo applied a deflating finish. Ten Hag was right in saying his players had made “a few small mistakes” in the buildup but Ronaldo’s burst to meet João Cancelo’s clipped cross, changing direction twice before flexing his neck muscles to inflict the inevitable, was breathtaking in its own way. It did not take a pessimist to feel that the tie’s lifeblood had been cut.

The Fiver: sign up and get our daily football email.

Ajax had pulsated in bursts before that. Hakim Ziyech’s left foot can be unsparing but here it was off beam four times; in fairness, Wojciech Szczesny was forced into a flying save by the third effort and the Eredivisie leaders had better sights of goal. The clearest saw Dusan Tadic, who proved as elusive to Juventus as he had to Real Madrid, finish a rat-a-tat of right-sided passes with a centre to Donny van de Beek, only for the midfielder to blast agonisingly past the upright from 12 yards as defenders closed in.

At its best their movement was joyous; Juventus had been tipped to face it down with a thousand-yard gaze but had their own moments too, perhaps supposing that Giorgio Chiellini’s injury-enforced absence compromised any instinctive caginess. Federico Bernardeschi shot over in the second minute, wide before Ronaldo’s goal and was denied by two last-ditch tackles in between. It meant nobody was especially surprised when they went ahead; the real astonishment would follow shortly afterwards.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest David Neres scores the Ajax equaliser. Photograph: Soccrates Images/Getty Images

As their team kicked off the second period, Ajax’s supporters let out a rendition of the chorus from Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds: “Every little thing’s gonna be all right”. Half a minute later it was, Neres pouncing on sloppy play from Cancelo on the left touchline before advancing into the area, spearing unstoppably past Szczesny and raising the roof. It was an incredible response, a poetic monument to positive thinking, and now the tie was ablaze.

Ancelotti back in London with fond memories but focused on Arsenal test Read more

“Ajax gained confidence while we were a little in shock,” the Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri said of the spell that followed, during which Ajax tore into his team in thrilling fashion without quite creating a decisive opening. Their excellent left-back, Nicolas Tagliafico, fired wide but also picked up a booking that rules him out of the return. Ziyech continued to take aim, albeit with diminishing returns, and then there was the moment seven minutes from time when the substitute Jurgen Ekkelenkamp made space in the box only to see Szczesny parry.

Costa, another replacement, then came within millimetres of changing the complexion once again but Ajax’s youngsters had been more than a match.

“It was a 99% grown-up performance,” Ten Hag said. “This was another wall we stepped over and if we want to make the semis, we have to do something similar again.” They did it last month at the Bernabéu; they feel they can do it at the Allianz Stadium and, on this evidence, football romantics with plans for six evenings’ time might want to rethink them.