Sven Botman is looking forward to his reunion with former club Ajax, admitting Lille's UEFA Europa League Last 32 tie with his former club will be "a bit special" even if there will be no room for sentiment.
Botman came through the Ajax youth academy before joining Lille last summer following a successful loan spell at Heerenveen last season. The 21-year-old centre-back has excelled in Ligue 1 Uber Eats, helping Lille to the top of the table with the second-best defensive record in the division.
Though he never made a first-team appearance for Ajax, he spent over a decade with the Amsterdam giants giving Thursday's tie at the Stade Pierre Mauroy a unique flavour.
"Meeting Ajax again is a little bit special, but it's a European game. The aim is play at 100%. So, whether it's Ajax or another team, it makes no difference to me," Botman said. "Ajax are a team that plays very high up the pitch, who apply pressure in their opponent's half. We have to exploit that, because there will be space. To do that, we have to stay organised. We're going to try and play our game as best we can."
Ajax won both UEFA Champions League group stage games between the pair last season without Lille even scoring a goal.
But the French league leaders come into the match on an eight-game unbeaten run in all competitions, winning seven straight matches before the goalless draw with Brest on Sunday.
"We want to win every cup and league," said Lille's USMNT forward Timothy Weah. "Everyone is hungry, we're young, and we want to win."
>> NEWS: Griezmann 'Mbappé will be on Messi & Ronaldo level'
