Ajax General Manager Edwin van der Sar said about two months ago that Ajax will appoint a new manager by the end of March at the latest. According to De Telegraaf, Julian Ward was the right man, but the 41-year-old Brit’s arrival was denied.
Ajax and Van der Sar do not want to react to this news for now.
Currently working for Liverpool, Ward was in extensive talks with Ajax. It’s unclear exactly where something went wrong, but the truth is that Van der Sar, whose performance has come under increasing scrutiny after another failed attempt, is in urgent need of a new manager.
The new director will need to find a coach for next year – John Heitinga has been called up until the end of the season – and also needs to work on the composition of the currently unstable roster.
hard search
The dash to Ward’s arrival is the next chapter in his tough search for a coach. Since Marc Overmars left nearly fourteen months ago, Ajax has been searching for the right candidate for one of the football club’s top positions.
The Executive Board and Supervisory Board (AR) have seen several initiatives fail recently.
Alex Kroes was the first name explicitly mentioned a year ago. The supervisory board saw the then-owner of Go Ahead Eagles as the ideal successor to the retired Overmars and began discussions with him. Alfred Schreuder, now dismissed coach, declined the honor after being appointed without Kroes’ knowledge.
Other attempts to appoint a coach have also failed, so Ajax opted for the Polder model last summer. Head coach Gerry Hamstra was transferred and, in consultation with Van der Sar, was allowed to set technical policy with Klaas Jan Huntelaar, who was already training internally to become Overmars’ successor.
The duo were given a chance to prove themselves, but according to the club, they were not successful. Hamstra and Ajax will most likely part ways after the end of this season, with Huntelaar taking on a different role within the club.
turbulent season
Ajax is having a disappointing and turbulent season. The reigning national champions were dishonorably eliminated from the Champions League, failing to win seven consecutive Premier League games over the winter. Schreuder was fired along with his deputy Matthias Kaltenbach.
Ajax recovered somewhat under his successor Heitinga, but the new coach was unable to prevent the Amsterdam side from being knocked out of the Europa League by Union Berlin and being pushed to six points in the Eredivisie by leaders Feyenoord two weeks ago.
Earlier in February, in one of his infrequent interviews on the football talk show Rondo, Van der Sar hinted that he was criticizing his own performance. “It was extremely difficult. I had to deal with all kinds of aspects that I didn’t think I had to deal with. I am definitely not giving myself enough.”
Immediately after Alfred Schreuder’s dismissal, Van der Sar spoke of a power vacuum at Ajax.
One of these aspects was the appointment of Heitinga at the end of the season, but the new coach must decide whether he will also be the coach of Ajax next season. This adds to the pressure on the Van der Sars search, which is now predominantly focused abroad.
Is Ajax negotiating with the German Mislintat?
Ajax wants a director with a large international network who is adept at completing major transfers. According to De Telegraaf, Ajax has now pointed their arrows at Sven Mislintat. The 50-year-old German currently has no club and is said to be in talks with Ajax after leaving VfB Stuttgart at the end of November.
Source: NOS
I’m George Gonzalez, a professional journalist and author at The Nation View. With more than 5 years of experience in the field, I specialize in covering sports news for various print media outlets. My passion for writing has enabled me to craft stories that capture the attention of readers all over the world.
