After seven league games without a victory, Ajax fired Alfred Schreuder as manager of the team.
After a 1-1 tie with mediocre Volendam, which dropped Ajax to fifth place in the Dutch premier division and seven points behind leader Feyenoord, the decision was made.
After Erik ten Hag left the team to join Manchester United the previous year, Schreuder assumed control of the organization.
Edwin van der Sar, CEO of Ajax, remarked, “This is a hard decision, but it’s necessary.
“Despite our season’s strong start, we lost a lot of pointless games. Even the football itself was unstable.
Ajax’s most recent success came on November 1 when they defeated Rangers 3-1 in the Champions League. However, they were unable to advance further in the competition and have since been relegated to the Europa League.
They had one loss and six straight draws in the Eredivisie after that match, with their most recent result coming against third-from-last Volendam.
In addition to selling defender Lisandro Martinez and winger Antony last summer, Schreuder oversaw the departures of Sebastien Haller, Daley Blind, Nicolas Tagliafico, Ryan Gravenberch, and Nicolas Tagliafico from Ajax.
“We trusted Alfred with our time and resources in order to change the course of events. We realized he couldn’t turn the tide, Van der Sar continued.
“Despite the numerous transfers, we believe the team is ready to win a championship. Over the past few weeks, we suffered significant point losses and regrettably failed to make any progress.
Analysis
The author of “Glorious reinvention: the revival of Ajax Amsterdam,” Karan Tejwani
What happened? There are a variety of factors at play. First off, given how the club has operated over the past year, Alfred Schreuder can be somewhat forgivable. Since Marc Overmars’ unavoidable departure as director of football a year ago, the relationship between the club’s upper echelons and the football team itself feels quite lost. Overmars’ replacements, Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Gerry Hamstra, haven’t been as effective.
Second, the team has experienced a significant turnover. Naturally, they lost a number of players over the summer, and then they made the greatest purchase in Eredivisie history. The squad suffered greatly from the change; the correct blend was lacking, and some signings appeared to be made in a hurry.
One ultra-group claimed that the team is sick with the flu and needs immediate medical attention, so they protested by waving white handkerchiefs during the game last night.
Although I don’t believe Erik ten Hag’s work at Ajax is sufficiently acknowledged in England since it is thought that he “only accomplished it in the Netherlands,” it is still a huge accomplishment for Ajax to have enjoyed such long-term success after he arrived. Ten Hag’s time at Ajax was highly spectacular.
