“He had tears in his eyes”: German top prospect endures nightmare night in 1-6 thrashing by Ajax Amsterdam

Danish club FC Midtjylland suffered a 1:6 hammering by Ajax Amsterdam in the Conference League on Thursday evening. Former Borussia Dortmund player Kjell Wätjen had a miserable day, with his sending-off playing a significant part in the defeat.

The Germany Under-20 international picked up two yellow cards in eight minutes for fouls on Ajax players Tolu Arokodare and Abdellah Ouazane, and went off in the 43rd minute. The score was still 1:1. Ajax then outplayed ten-man Midtjylland at the MCH Arena in Herning after the break and scored five more goals.

Midtjylland coach Mike Tullberg said afterwards that Wätjen had taken the mistake to heart and apologised to his team-mates straight away in the dressing room: "It hurt him a lot. Kjell had tears in his eyes."

Neither Tullberg nor the rest of the group blamed the central midfielder: "He's a young lad and he'll get through it. The other lads hugged him too. That says a lot about how our team sticks together. Kjell will learn from this." The former Borussia Dortmund reserve-team and interim coach added that Wätjen knew "exactly that he had done something wrong", but his colleagues on the pitch "could have helped him better" too.

Tullberg made clear that Wätjen's second yellow card would have no further consequences: "We're living in 2026, after all. He made a mistake and we can't undo it. I won't fine him either. That was more a thing from when I was still a player: back then, you were fined for stupid yellow cards. That's no longer appropriate today."

Between 2015 and 2025, Wätjen developed in Borussia Dortmund's youth ranks and was at times regarded as an enormous talent. The right-footed player won the European Under-17 Championship with Germany's Under-17 national team in 2023.

Wätjen made four first-team appearances for Dortmund, but did not establish himself permanently in the senior squad. A loan to local rivals VfL Bochum in the 2. Bundesliga during the 2025/26 season also brought mixed results. That led to a permanent departure from Borussia in the summer. Tullberg, who had previously helped develop him, brought him to the Danish cup winners. Midtjylland paid a transfer fee of €2.5 million, which could rise to just over €3 million through bonuses. Wätjen signed a contract running until 2031.

Until Thursday evening, things had gone quite well for Wätjen at his new club. He had played 19 competitive matches and is a key player. His three goals and three assists have helped Midtjylland top the 3F Superliga table after 13 matchdays.