Oliver Edvardsen became the unlikely hero in Spain as the Norwegian winger struck late to earn Ajax a dramatic 2–1 victory over Villarreal, keeping the Amsterdam club alive in the UEFA Champions League. His decisive goal arrived in the 89th minute at La Cerámica and sealed Ajax’s second win of the campaign.

Villarreal head coach Marcelino appeared to prioritise domestic matters, making seven changes from the side that lost 2–0 at Real Betis last weekend. Former Newcastle United forward Ayoze Pérez led the line, supported by Nicolas Pépé and Tani Oluwaseyi on the flanks, while first-choice goalkeeper Luiz Júnior was rested ahead of Saturday’s league clash with Real Madrid.

Ajax interim boss Fred Grim also reshuffled his side. Aaron Bouwman partnered the returning Youri Baas at centre-back, while Jorthy Mokio was preferred to fellow teenager Sean Steur in midfield.

Although Ajax dominated possession early on, Villarreal were the more dangerous side in attack. Before the half-hour mark, Vitezslav Jaros was called into action to deny efforts from Oluwaseyi, Alberto Moleiro and Thomas Partey, with the Czech goalkeeper producing an excellent save to keep out Partey’s strike.

Ajax, four-time European champions, struggled to impose themselves in the opening 30 minutes. Their only effort of note came from right-back Anton Gaaei, whose speculative attempt posed little threat to Arnau Tenas. Owen Wijndal followed suit shortly after, forcing Tenas into a firm save in the 34th minute.

The deadlock was broken just four minutes into the second half. A deep ball caught out youngster Bouwman, allowing Oluwaseyi to break free and confidently finish into the bottom-left corner to give Villarreal the lead.

Play was briefly halted following a medical emergency involving a steward in the stands, who was stretchered off and later reported to be in stable condition.

Ajax levelled the match in fortuitous fashion when Oscar Gloukh’s inswinging free-kick evaded everyone, including a scrambling Tenas, and drifted into the net. Moments later, Gloukh nearly completed the turnaround after being played through by Gaaei, but despite rounding the goalkeeper, he lost control before he could tap into an empty goal.

With time running out, Edvardsen delivered the decisive moment. In the 89th minute, the want-away winger showed remarkable composure to slot past Tenas into the bottom corner, sparking celebrations among the travelling support.

Villarreal pushed forward during seven minutes of stoppage time but were unable to find an equaliser as Ajax held firm to claim a vital away win in a sparsely filled La Cerámica.

The victory lifts Ajax to six points, leaving them just two points shy of the crucial 24th place in the standings. Villarreal, meanwhile, remain winless in Europe ahead of their final League Phase fixture against Bayer Leverkusen. Ajax will conclude their campaign at home to Olympiakos on Wednesday, January 28.