Ofcourse it offends them. I'm not arguing that. But when Ajax fans sing songs about feyenoord fans hanging off the bridge, rotterdam being bombed or the sexual preferences of the rotterdam population I'm sure it offends people too. And you hardly hear about this. What strikes me is that the jewish community and other people think this has anything to do with actually hating jews. Nobody cares about jews in this country.
I don't know enough about Dutch culture to say, but that wouldn't fly here. If you were a white guy calling another white guy a n*****, you'd get your ass beat.
If it has nothing to do with religion why do some Ajax fans identify with it? I'm not trying to prove you wrong here, I seriously would like to know. Some of the chants you are talking about might offend someone who is really PC but I think making Holocaust references and calling for the death of a religous group is different. You see what I mean?
On a decidedly lighter note, at least three websites I've viewed (Ajax netwerk.to, AT5, and NOS Teletekst) are reporting that ex- Twente coach, and former Ajax and Oranje great, John van't Schip will be the next trainer of Jong Ajax. Van't Schip will take the helm when current trainer Gerard van der Lem leaves to become Technical Director of Saudi Arabia. Also, Jong Ajax defeated Jong RKC by 2:3. This game was notable because midfield players Stefano Seedorf and Wesley Sneijders Both scoort. They may well be pushing for 1st team places soon; especially Sneijders and especially with Raffie down at least six weeks. Also, Joe Didulica played in the match. This was his second run out since his recent return from injury. This makes the goaltender position even more crowded.
Mido wants out... http://www.planetfootball.com/article.asp?id=108816&cpid=9&title=Mido+reveals+Ajax+exit+plan Mido wants out of Ajax, next transfer window...
NOS TELETEKST has a report in its "nieuws" section, #647, that Ajax will travel to Milan without John O'Brien. The report says that they will travel with a 19 man squad; including the Wi-Wi twins(Winter and Witschge) and Jelle van Damme. Victor Sikora reportedly was at training today while the aforementioned Johnny O and Jari Litmanen were not. Litmanen's status is still up in the air. In other Ajax news, John van't Schip, former Ajax and Oranje right wing , signed a three year deal to coach Jong Ajax. This is just the latest example of a great Ajacied returning to the fold. Well home John! Ronald Koeman and Ruud Krol at Ajax-1 , Danny Blind at Ajax A1, Marco van Basten, and Bryan Roy are all part of the top tier of coaching at Ajax.
Not exactly. Ajax was one of the Greek warriors from The Iliad by Homer. http://www.pantheon.org/articles/a/ajax.html
A few Ajax-related tidbits. First, Cristian Chivu served his one game league suspension for the birthday rode kaart at RKC. He is again eligible for selection for Friday's tough away tie at Roda JC.Speaking of Chivu red cards, UEFA is to discuss the length of his ban after his sending off v. Lyon last week. Second, both Jong Ajax and Ajax A-1 won yesterday. Jong Ajax survived a scare against amateur side Huizen in the first round proper of the Amstel Cup. Jong Ajax won 3:2 on a golden goal by Norodin Boukhari.More than 1/2 the Jong Ajax squad on the day consisted of Ajax-1 reserves; such as Machlas, Wamberto, Boukhari, Pasanen, van Halst, Yakubu, and Timmer. Danny Blind and Marco van Basten's Ajax A-1 won 1:2 at Feyenoord A-1 behind two goals from starlet Daniel De Ridder. A different post talked of Nigel de Jong's fine play. I wouldn't be surprised to see the likes of Wesley Sneijder, Michael Krohn-Dehli, Stefano Seedorf, and Daniel De Ridder become stars for Ajax in the next several years...and then go elsewhere so Ajax has to start over.
That is the sad Ajax fact. I hope that Chivu and some others will see that this Ajax has potential. Real future world class potential. And that they decide to stay because they realize it's very rewarding to build up instead of just move to a succesfull club. However, even if Chivu would want to stay I'm 100% sure Ajax will sell him. They prefer short term money over the long term effect of another CL victory. Why not sell all shares in foreign clubs? It will probably come to that point eventually. Oh well... we can always hope! PS. Rumour has it (well it's a bit more than a rumour) that none less than SAN MARCO (Marco v Basten) will officially open the new Ajax supporters home next saturday. After that it's party time
Ajax have been battling injuries all year so why should tomorrow be any different. According to Ajax.nl and Ajax Netwerk.to, the following players are injured and will miss tomorrows 1 v4 match-up v.Roda JC in Kerkrade: Jari Litmanen(hamstring ) and Andy van der Meyde(shinbone).Cristian Chivu's sore rib also leaves him doubtful for the match. In Chivu's case,I wouldn't have been totally surprised if he didn't play regardless of fitness. Ajax may very well employ a back four of Hatem Trabelsi- Andre Bergdolmo-Nigel de Jong -Jelle van Damme against Inter due to Chivu's 1 match ban. Running them out tomorrow would be a stern test against a team who has the likes of Anastasiou,Cristiano, Sonko, and Soetars.Not Crespo, Vieri, Recoba, and Conceicao(sp?) ...but not chopped liver by a longshot.
Tough Group Indeed Ajax will need so,me luck and to be at the top of their game for to advance from this group. I think Valencia is the best team here.
I know I'm stepping into this debate about 2 months after the fact, but there is a chapter in the book BRILLIANT ORANGE which covers the whole "Ajax is a Jewish Club" myth. You're right that the F-Side embraced the Star of David originally, and many now consider it the "Ajax Star" The book goes into a lot of detail about how the large Jewish population of Amsterdam somewhat contributed to all this, and, in fact, many Yiddish terms are used as slang in Amsterdam. Many Jews are unsettled by all of it, but to the fans (particularly the F-Side), they consider the term "Jew" to be one of affection, and they identify themselves as "Jews". I don't remember off the top of my head which player was involved, but one new Ajax player several years ago was glorified as being a "Super-Jew". They consider it a complement (the fans). I'm sure a lot of you have read Brilliant Orange, but if you haven't, go out and get it immediately! A fantastic book, and very revealing.
You're right; the chapter in Brilliant Orange is a great primer on the subject. However, if you're seriously interested in the question of the "Jewishness" of Ajax, then I suggest you read Simon Kuper's book, 'Ajax, de Joden, Nederland' which is in Dutch. As far as I know, it's the most in-depth treatment of the subject. If you don't read Dutch, you can read a translation to English of 90% of the book on our web site: http://www.ajax-usa.com/ajax/kuper/
Is that the same Kuper who wrote "Football against the Enemy"? Good result for Ajax this weekend. Zlatan seems to be on a hot streak recently. And Feyenoord lost, which is always nice.
Machlas finally found a new club? - LINK FC Sevilla has shown an interest in the player who's been sitting on the bench a lot lately, the article says Ajax will want to hear on friday if they can arrange a deal or not.
You can still read that translation on our web site. However, you can also order Ajax, the Dutch, the War, a newly released updated version of the book, in English, from Amazon.co.uk. http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos...25842/sr=2-1/ref=sr_2_3_1/026-9172969-2014036
Feb 9th vs Fey... Van d. Vaart's first game back, if he plays the full 90 I'm thinking he's a good bet to notch 2 goals... 1 is a given for the future of the Clockwork...
Despite the addition of three Ajax 1 players to its squad, Young Ajax lost yet another match, yesterday at ADO Den Haag, 2-1. Coach van 't Schip's side has been weakened by the severe injuries of the first team all season. Because of that, players such as Seedorf, Sneijder and deJong has been promoted permantly to the first team, therefore depleting the current Ajax2 squad. In many matches, van't Schip has had to import several A1 players as well as "Saturday amateurs". This is a good/bad case for Ajax in general, but the youth team is suffering because of it. Good because it continues to inject Ajax youth players into the first team but bad because of the current form of the Ajax 2 squad. Jong Ajax currently lies 6th in a 12 team league. Very poor. Jong Heerenveen, Utreg & RKC takes the top three spots.