After a nightmare start to the season, Ajax are starting to show signs of life after back-to-back wins in the Eredivisie – despite Thursday’s 2-0 home defeat by Brighton and Hove Albion in the Europa League.
Their 2-0 win over FC Volendam at the start of November brought their 10-game winless run in all competitions to an end.
Ajax have a rich history of success in the Netherlands and won the Eredivisie title as recently as May 2022.
Erik ten Hag left the club for Manchester United at the end of the 2021-22 season and the club have struggled to replace him ever since.
Chopping and changing of Ajax managers
Alfred Schreuder took over from Ten Hag but was sacked in January 2023 following a poor run of form.
John Heitinga was next to try and steady the ship, as he took the role on an interim basis until the end of the 2022-23 campaign.
The former Everton and Fulham defender could only guide the club to third place in the Eredivisie, having to settle for Europa League football, with bitter rivals Feyenoord claiming the Dutch crown.
Ajax also lost the KNVB Cup final to PSV Eindhoven on penalties at De Kuip in Rotterdam, leaving the club empty-handed in terms of silverware.
Maurice Steijn replaced Heitinga in the dugout – Steijn had spent the majority of his coaching career with smaller Dutch sides, most recently at Sparta Rotterdam, who he led to a sixth-place finish in 2022-23 – their best league finish in 27 years.
The long winless run led to Ajax parting ways with Steijn near the end of October, with former Ajax defender Hedwiges Maduro taking temporary control of the side.
Maduro oversaw a 5-2 defeat away at PSV, where Ajax took a 2-1 lead into the break before the Eindhoven club struck four times in the second half to send Ajax to the bottom of the table.
He was also in the dugout for October’s 2-0 defeat away at Brighton and Hove Albion, before the Amsterdam club made another temporary managerial move.
John van ‘t Schip is the latest manager to take charge of the club, once again on an interim basis for now.
Boardroom turmoil
The lack of stability in management is one of the key reasons behind Ajax’s poor performances on the pitch, but there has been drama off the pitch too.
Marc Overmars, who starred for the likes of Ajax, Arsenal, and FC Barcelona during a glorious playing career, was Director of Football at Ajax until February 2022, when he resigned after sending inappropriate messages to female colleagues.
His replacement was Sven Mislintat, who had previously held a similar role at Borussia Dortmund and Arsenal.
Mislintat was fired in September 2023, due to a lack of support within the organisation. The sacking happened in the aftermath of an abandoned game at home to Feyenoord when Ajax fans threw flares onto the pitch with their side 3-0 down.
The game was completed behind closed doors the following week, as the Rotterdam side added another goal to seal a 4-0 win in De Klassieker.
Mass exodus of star talent
When Ten Hag joined Manchester United in 2022, he raided his old club to sign both Lisandro Martinez and Antony from the Dutch club.
They were two of many big players to leave the club that summer, with the likes of Sebastian Haller, Andre Onana and Ryan Gravenberch also departing the Dutch capital.
Missing out on Champions League football this season hurt in more ways than one, and Ajax again lost a lot of key players from their squad during the summer transfer window.
Jurrien Timber, Calvin Bassey, Edson Alvarez, and Mohammed Kudus all swapped Amsterdam for London, with moves to Arsenal, Fulham, and West Ham respectively.
Add to that the loss of club captain Dusan Tadic, who fell out with the club over a lack of ambition in the transfer market and the bad form begins to make more sense.
The former Southampton star agreed to terminate his contract at Ajax and took his talents to Fenerbahce instead.
Going into the Volendam game, the Amsterdam side were bottom of the Eredivisie table and in desperate need of a win.
The hosts were left frustrated for long periods of the game, but shortly before the hour mark, former Tottenham man Steven Bergwijn gave Ajax the lead.
When ex-Arsenal forward Chuba Akpom sealed the win in the 89th minute, the relief for the Ajax players was clear for all to see.
Room for optimism?
The win against Volendam was followed up with a comprehensive 4-1 victory against Heerenveen, as Akpom bagged another two goals to help the Dutch giants to another win.
Akpom was one of the signings made over the summer, following an impressive spell at Championship side Middlesbrough.
He admitted that he found it difficult to settle in at Ajax with all the chaos surrounding the club in recent months.
He said: ‘It’s been a catastrophe. Personally, and for the team, and we all know this, it is no secret. To be honest, I haven’t felt settled for two months, and it’s only this week that I have felt settled.
‘I’ve been in a hotel room by myself, I’ve not been playing, and I have kind of felt like I’m alone here but this week I have felt back to my normal self in my apartment. The manager came and spoke to me straight away and on a human level and asked how I am and how is my family.’
The bulk of Akpom’s appearances have come from the bench, but both he, and Ajax, will be hoping his recent run of form continues, to help propel the club up the Eredivisie table after a torrid start to the season.
