Everton manager Sam Allardyce has admitted that summer signing Davy Klaassen is disillusioned with life at the club after finding himself out of favour for the Premier League duties. The Netherlands international joined the Toffees after a top season with Ajax in the Eredivisie, but he has since no success in the English top-flight.
From the go, Klaassen struggled to adapt to the pace of the English game, and he has not started a single Premier League match for the Toffees since September. Speaking ahead of the Burnley match, Allardyce stressed that the Dutchman is not pleased with his situation, but there is nothing much he can do given the competition for places in the Toffees ranks.
Ajax’s new coach Erik Ten Hag has just completed his first training session at his new club. After being appointed only a few weeks ago, Erik Ten Hag is expected to change the club’s near term vision. The club recently had a clear out of the managerial staff after they did not stick in line with the philosophy of the club. Ten Hag comes to the job with a relatively decent coaching career in but not at the very top of the game. He has been in charge of Utrecht before coming to Ajax, but he says that he has learned a lot from working with Pep Guardiola at Bayern Munich.
Ten Hag hopes to implement the lessons learned from the best in the business the Dutch outfit. The 47-year-old has replaced Marcel Keizer and will be hoping to make a major impact in the second half of the Dutch Eredivisie. Ten Hag has spoken at length about the way Guardiola has shaped his tactical approach and knowledge about the game. Regarded as one of the best managers in the world, Guardiola spent three years at the Allianz Arena, while Ten Hag was placed in charge of the Bayern Munich reserve team. Ten Hag is expected to be backed by a couple of signings, but the manager is not sure about the possibility of spending money in the January window.
It has been revealed that Tottenham Hotspur defender Davinson Sanchez had the chance to go to Barcelona two years ago but elected to go to Ajax instead.
The 21-year-old has been earning rave reviews with his performances for the North London in the Premier League and also the Champions League this season. He came to the attention of Spurs during his two seasons in Dutch football with Ajax.
The Netherlands have quickly dropped from being a nation on the edge of victory on the world stage to collapsing back to back on the continental stage. Even the Dutch football federation (KNVB) officials could not ascertain if they would have a full stadium when they played their last World Cup qualifier against Sweden – yes, it was that bad that the fans preferred to stay away.
Netherlands have done very well at recent World Cup events, reaching the last four even. Now they are into missing Euro finals and World Cup finals as the nation’s football plunge into crisis.
Ajax manager Marcel Keizer says that the summer signings like Maximilian Wöber, Luis Manuel Orejuela, andSiem de Jong are not yet ready to make first-team appearances for Ajax just yet.
Siem de Jong happen to be one of the high profile rivals for the club this summer, as the club were able to get him after long-standing transfer interest. He comes in from a disappointing spell at Newcastle United. Even though the club were promoted back to the Premier league, the 28-year-old chose to return to Ajax for €2.3 million.
Luis Manuel Orejuela cost a little more following his transfer from Deportivo Cali. He cost in the region of € 3.6 million and he is yet to make his first-team appearance for the club. The 21-year-old right back is expected to be a key player for the club going forward and is already rated as one of the top talents in world football. Ajax were able to get him much earlier than other clubs due to the history of the club when it comes to promoting youngsters to great status in the game. However, the biggest transfer of the summer happens to be Maximilian Wöber, who has been brought in from Rapid Vienna at a cost of € 7.5 million.
Siem de Jong is likely to end his spell in English football after making a return to Ajax.
The midfielder has been with Newcastle since 2014, but he has gone through an up and down time at the Tyneside. The 28-year-old has already experienced relegation and promotion with the club. As a result, he was loaned out to PSV last season when he made in 19 appearances and scored six goals in the league. As a result, the impact made by the Dutchman has prompted Ajax to make an offer for the player, who joined Newcastle in a £ 6 million deal.
The midfielder has signed a three-year contract with the club. On Friday, Newcastle manager Rafa Benitez admitted thatSiem de Jong was close to returning to Dutch football. Over the years, several players have been lost by the Dutch football but it is a case of a top player returning much earlier than scheduled. Even though he has been hit by injuries and lack of poor form,Siem de Jong would be an excellent signing for Ajax as he knows the club extremely well. He came to Newcastle for the £ 6 million and was widely regarded as a major flop, as he failed to settle at the club.
When you’re considered the thired best team in the country (well, amongst the top 3 of the country’s top clubs in a respected European soccer league), not winning the league in almost 20 years can take it’s toll. A bit like Atletico playing the third wheel in the perennial battle between Barca and Real, Feyenoord have always been left out on a limb by both PSV and Ajax, with the clubs taking it in turns to exclipse their achievements.
From failing to sustain a channel of talents, falling off a once respected perch to almost declaring bankruptcy, Dutch side Feyenoord’s league title this season is no doubt set wiping the tears of many years of failure and restoring faith to the fans that have waited 18 long years to have a title parade of their own throughout the streets of Rotterdam.
Premier League champs Chelsea have snapped Dutch football wonderkid Daishawn Redan ahead of rivals, according to reports in England.
The whizkid is expected to join the Cobham academy where he would continue with his development.
The Blues defeated local rivals the RedDevils and the Citizens, and German side RB Leipzig to get the lad. Reports in the Netherlands say Redan has signed a contract with Stamford Bridge as several clubs joggled for his signature.
The Dutch youth international would resume at the club from July 1, after turning 16 in February. The youngster, who featured for the Dutch Under 17, preferred the Cobham route that has produced successful results in recent year. The youth side won the UEFA Youth League in 2015 and 2016.
Though there is a poor record of the youth players making it to the senior team, Redan feels he would get the best training and exposure there then decide on his future later.
The head of youth at Ajax Said Ouaali said the club has mapped out a path for him to follow aside discussing this with the player and the Chelsea management.
Former European giants Ajax seem to be on a path back to greatness using a new generation of young stars.
They reached the Europa League final after fighting off several opponents. They are set to play Manchester United in the final in Stockholm on Wednesday and victory could mean an early graduation for the young Dutch prospects.
Ajax youngsters herald a new hope for Dutch football. The Netherlands are renowned for their academies and this new generation of talent are keen on conquering Europe. They defeated Willem II 3-1 in the final round of the Eredivisie season. The incredible thing is that the average team player was 20 years and 139 days. Let’s take a look.
Andre Onana and Kenny Tete are 21 years – the second oldest players in the team. Matthijs de Ligt is only 17 years making him the youngest while the only semblance of experience is Davy Klaassen at 24 years. Davinson Sanchez, Jairo Riedewald, Donny van de Beek, David Neres, and Frenkie De Jong are only 20. Justin Kluivert – son of the legend Patrick – is only 18 while Kasper Dolberg is a year older.
Dutch giant Ajax are set to play Schalke in the next Europa League rounds.
The Amsterdam-based outfit saw off FC Copenhagen en route this stage. It seems the Dutch side – used to be a European powerhouse – are reclaiming their lost spot as this is the first time since 2003 that they have reached this stage.
The club would line-up against one of their best stars in Klaas-Jan Huntelaar. Huntelaar netted over a century of goals during his time at the Dutch side. Ajax would hope the players who would be on international duty would return in one piece ahead of the clash in mid-April.
Ajax showed strength of character when they upturned the deficit in the last round against the Danish giants. The club retains the hope of a double this term under manager Peter Bosz. The result sets the tone for the forthcoming match against Eredivisie leaders Feyenoord.
The first leg ended in a defeat but a 2-0 win ensured they went through with a 3-2 aggregate – enough for a quarter finals slot. The hosts were fired up from the start of the game. They started as early as the second minute.