Ajax
midfielder Lasse Schone said some of the "sparkle" has been taken away
from the Europa League final due to the attacks in Manchester.
Lasse Schone says the
attacks in Manchester particularly resonated with him as his wife and
child
attended an
Ariana Grande concert in Amsterdam just two weeks ago.
On Monday, a suicide
bomber killed 22 people and injured another 59 at Manchester Arena following a
concert by the American pop star.
UEFA announced on
Tuesday that there will be a minute's silence before Ajax and Manchester
United contest the
Europa League final in Stockholm on Wednesday, while players will wear
black
armbands after
a scaled-back opening ceremony.
And Ajax midfielder
Schone reflected on the events when addressing a pre-match media conference.
"Well, it was
terrible for us as well. You read about it, it's devastating," he said.
"The coach
[Peter Bosz] just said Ariana Grande performed in Amsterdam. My wife and my
child were there. It's so close, it's terrible, it's horrible.
"The coach just
said it adequately, it takes away the sparkle. I'm trying not think about
[it]."
Schone has won the
Eredivisie twice since joining Ajax in 2012, but described the meeting
against
Jose Mourinho's
United as the pinnacle of his career.
"I think it is
the biggest game of my long career," the 30-year-old added.
"It's a final so anything can
happen in a final.
"We are two
different teams, we have two different ways of playing football. We have to be
true to
ourselves and show we
can perform under pressure with this young team.
"It's a final
everything can happen, we think we have a chance."
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