By SHAUN CUSTIS
THERE is a coffin being prepared for Manchester City in the Group of Death.
Ajax gave Roberto Mancini’s men a thorough beating in Amsterdam and now there is only the faintest trace of a heartbeat remaining.
This European campaign is turning into an absolute disaster for the Premier League champions.
They were expected to get their show back on the road in Holland, having taken only one point from their opening two games against Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund.
But, after Samir Nasri had given City the lead, the dam burst in spectacular fashion.
Ajax equalised on the stroke of half-time through Siem de Jong and added second-half goals from Niklas Moisander and the impressive Danish youngster Christian Eriksen.Eriksen, who flitted purposefully from midfield to attack, is not a secret in European football and many of the top clubs have been looking at him — including England’s elite.
City cannot have done their homework, because they simply could not cope with the 20-year-old.
Most worryingly, the defence looked as if they had spent rather too long in the local ‘coffee shops’. They seemed completely spaced out.
Joleon Lescott, recalled for his first European start of the season, had a nightmare.
Alongside him, skipper Vincent Kompany is in nothing like the form of last season.
Ajax used to win the European Cup in the old days but do not have anywhere near City’s endless resources, which these days are considered essential to success.
The Dutch club develops home-grown talent and makes bargain basement signings.
Their entire starting XI cost only £4million and also featured two players in Ryan Babel — back for his second spell — and Christian Poulsen who flopped at Liverpool.
City, on the other hand, have spent hundreds of millions but, for the second season running, are set to go out of the tournament at the group stage. Last season they were somewhat unlucky to miss the knockout phase, having amassed 10 points.
With three games to go this time round, the maximum they can get is 10 again.
Yet with Real Madrid and Ajax still to come at home, as well as a trip to Dortmund, that is surely just a pipe dream.
Frankly, the way City are going they will be lucky to make the Europa League.
Ajax were always comfortable on the ball and Eriksen threatened first with a volley which flew just wide.
Once City hit them with a quick break on 22 minutes, though, to produce the opening goal, it was expected that the visitors would go on to win.
Micah Richards played a lovely curled ball into James Milner, with Nasri screaming for it on the left. Milner held off his marker and then delivered the perfect ball, which the Frenchman struck exquisitely into the far corner.
Plucky Ajax were being put in their place. Yes, they were playing pretty football and trying to do things the right way but the mighty City machine was now cranking up to crush them.
Maybe complacency set in and they thought the job was done.
Certainly the home crowd had seen enough to suggest their kids could still cause a bit of aggravation.
They were far from downhearted and kept a relentless din going, urging their team back into it.
And, just before the break, Ajax got their deserved equaliser — a shocker from City’s point of view.
De Jong started the move and fed full-back Ricardo van Rhijn, who was allowed to get in a low cross from the right which should have been dealt with. But a dawdling Gareth Barry made no effort to cut it out, Kompany could not readjust as he ran back and De Jong smashed a shot right-footed beyond a helpless Joe Hart.
Mancini was not a happy man as his team headed down the tunnel heads bowed.
And he was steaming when City fell behind on 57 minutes.
The corner from Eriksen was clipped in towards the near post and no one in dark blue spotted the run of Finnish centre-back Moisander.
He could barely believe his luck as he met the ball without a challenge from Lescott, who never got off the ground, and directed an angled header beyond Hart.
It was awful defending again and now City were really up against it.
Lescott paid the price, being replaced by Aleksander Kolarov, and City went to a back three. The tactical change only created more uncertainty and Yaya Toure and Kolarov ended up arguing about who was supposed to go where.
City’s plight got even worse as Ajax hit their third in the 68th minute.
Again Barry was at fault. He was robbed and Eriksen collected the ball. The Dane switched to his left past Kompany and his shot deflected off Gael Clichy to give Hart no chance. What a mess.
It took a great save by Hart to stop Tobias Sana making it four before Kenneth Vermeer prevented City making any late survival bid by twice denying Edin Dzeko.
By the end, City had four international strikers on the pitch in Dzeko, Carlos Tevez, Mario Balotelli and Sergio Aguero — worth approximately £110m between them.
But money could not buy City any more goals.
Instead, it was the paupers who proved to be the princes.
