Frenkie de Jong said that part of the reason why Ajax resonated with supporters during their Champions League run was due to their outsider status.

“I think everyone enjoyed the fact there was a team outside the European elite that got so far with that kind of football. Besides Spurs and Liverpool fans, I think everyone wanted us to win it. It was a fairytale. With a very bad ending, a bittersweet symphony," said de Jong. 

Matthijs de Ligt chose to look at how far the group had come to be in the position to make the final as opposed to the disappointment from getting knocked out of the semifinals. 

“It’s a chance out of millions that you make it to the final. Beforehand you go for the [domestic] double; you do not even take into account that you reach the group stage. Then you are so close to the final. I get goosebumps if I think where we came from," said de Ligt.