Ajax’s disintegration
Five of eleven starters have left the club this summer, netting the club more than 100 million euros. Tagliafico will be next.
Ajax surprised European football once again this season with a record number of victories in the Champions League group stage. Though they failed to reproduce these performances in the round of 16, clubs from the big leagues have seen their quality and have begun to dismantle the team from Amsterdam yet again.
The first departure was the hardest, with Erik ten Hag signing for Manchester United in April. The coach took the opportunity to take Lisandro Martínez, who left Ajax for €54M (it could be €10M more in variables). These figures make the Argentine defender, to date, the third most expensive sale in the club’s history behind Frenkie de Jong and Matthijs de Ligt.
Not only have they paid a large sum for him, but Haller already left a few weeks ago for €31M. The striker arrived in Germany, one of the favorite countries for Eredivisie players, along with Gravenberch and Mazraoui. These last two have ended up at Bayern Munich. The Germans have paid €18.5M for the midfielder, while the Moroccan winger has arrived as a free transfer.
To these four important losses, all part of the starting XI of the 2021-22 season, we must add Onana. The goalkeeper did not renew and a few days ago he was announced by Inter. Other players with less weight in the locker room such as Danilo, Labyad and Kotarski have also left the club.
To date, the team from Amsterdam has pocketed €104.5 million with eight departures in just one month of of the open trasnfer window. However, there are many highly coveted players that Ajax still has in their ranks. While Jurriën Timber seems determined to stay, Antony’s name is a favourite to become one of the star signings of the summer at Manchester United. For his part, Nicolás Tagliafico, who has already publicly stated his intention to leave this summer, has offers from England’s Brighton and Olympique de Lyon.
The replacements
To alleviate this flight of talent, Ajax has already announced the signings of the long-awaited Steven Bergwijn and Owen Wijndal, for €31.25M and €10M respectively.
But the additions of Ajax do not end here. Alfred Schreuder has asked Calvin Bassey, from Rangers, to replace Lisandro Martínez in central defence. Ajax will pay around €25M for him. The announcement of Francisco Conceiçao, Porto’s right winger, that it will cost €5M, will not take long finish. Furthermore, Brian Brobbey will return to the club for around €17.5M, after being on loan since January, and he won’t be the only striker to sign.