Sustain the Excellence: Ajax, 2019-20

Now that the 2018-19 season is complete with a run to the semi-finals of the Champions League still fresh in our minds it's time to start thinking of next season. Ajax will have to play two preliminary rounds to qualify for the Champions League group stage next season so there will be another early start to the training program. The only national competition on the books is the Nations League and Euro qualifiers but those will be over in early June.

Here is the current roster of Ajax players and I'll be updating it as transfers are announced and final.

Onana and Tagliafico said they are staying another season. Blind and Tadic are not going anywhere, Ziyech is not listed as he was promised a transfer by Overmars. Here is a list by position of the Ajax roster who played at least one match this season, were on loan, or youth players Ajax included on their official Champions League roster with an asterisk. Bande was out injured all season but expected to see first team action. New transfers are in italics. :

GK: Onana, Scherpen, Varela (on loan from Benfica and don't know if he will be back), van Leer, Lamprou, Kotarski*

Defense: Tagliafico, Blind, de Ligt, Mazraoui, Veltman, Magallan, Schuurs, Perie, Martinez, Kristensen, Sinkgraven, Botman*, Bakboord*

MF: Schöne, van de Beek, Marin, Eiting, Ekkelenkamp, Gravenberch, Labyad, de Wit, Lang

Forwards: Huntelaar, Dolberg, Traore, Neres, Tadic, Bande, Cerny, Nunnely*

Jong Ajax players who may be in the mix: Jurien & Quinen Timber, Kuhn, Danilo Pereira, Bijleveld, Dest

A fair amount of talent still remains.

 

Dolberg was good in the Europa League run under Bosz and then he got hurt and missed a lot of games. IIRC a lot of big clubs in Europe were circling around with €s to spend. I think he's on notice for next season and if he does not perform he is likely to head back to Denmark to join Fischer and Boilensen.

 

It's really not clear. Madrid have not said one way or the other whether they want to bring him back. Someone in Odegaard's camp said he has outgrown the Eredivisie and wants a challenge in a higher league. I would be surprised if the comes to Ajax and the only way it happens is if van de Beek leaves.

He is on loan to Groningen for another season. Ajax have Dolberg, Huntelaar, and Traore for next season. quite frankly Traore is a better prospect than Serhuis.

 

de Ligt is still an Ajax player. His agent, Raiola has a three month ban first imposed by the Italian FA and later FIFA, and he cannot take part in direct negotiations. It has been reported that Raiola wants up to 20% of de Ligt's transfer fee from Barca and that the club refuses this. It's not clear what other clubs are in the hunt. Bayern have said they won't spend more than €80M on transfers this summer and their first priority is Leroy Sane.

I think there is a 40% possibility that de Ligt remains with Ajax and would leave in January if Ajax do not qualify for the Champions League group stage. I think he wants to be a starter with what ever club he moves to and the only guaranteed starting spot at this point in time would seem to be at Juventus. I don't think he wants to transfer to a team that is not at the top of their league.

 

Naci Unuvar is signing his first contract with Ajax. He turns 16 in mid-June and will be under contract for three years, the standard length of youth contracts. In other youth news, Dillion Hoogewerf, a U-17 Ajax forward, won't sign with Ajax and is off to ManU where he will be in the wilderness with no hope of every playing at Old Trafford. When will they ever learn?

 

I think there is a 40% chance he stays with Ajax. He's still under contract and until he is sold he is on the list. I would not be surprised if Overmars offers de Ligt a big pay increase to stay one more season.

Ziyech is not on the list as Overmars promised him a transfer away this summer.

 

I'm sure de Ligt wants CL football. This limits the choices. The one team that really needs him is Juventus, but they will have a new manager and have a lot of holes to fill. I really hope he doesn't go to PSG.

 

Ajax-Feyenoord U-19 match was suspended at the 30 minute mark because of a major disturbance in the stands. This kind of hooliganism cannot be tolerated at all and the fact that it has now moved to youth games is not good. I respect rivalries but when they lead to violence, there are no winners.

 

I think de Ligt's value will only go up if he stays one more year at Ajax. He just bought an apartment in Amsterdam with his girl friend (daughter of Keje Molenaar). Makes me think that what @feyenoordsoccerfan said will happen.

 

If they make it through the qualifiers for the CL, Ajax will be in Pot 2 for the draw courtesy of Chelsea's win over Arsenal in the EL final today.

 

Ajax won the U-19 league championship defeating Feyenoord 2-0 with goals by Brobbey and Unuvar. There was not a single Ajax player who had reached his 18th birthday and a number of them are eligible for U-16 competition.

 

Yes, my thoughts exactly. Liverpool played not to lose. Most of the Spurs shots were too weak. Ajax would have made this a better match.

 

Clubs with the most UEFA points in 2018/2019:
1. Ajax 32
2. FC Barcelona 30
3. Chelsea 30
4. Liverpool 29
5. Arsenal 26
6. Tottenham Hotspur 26
7. Manchester City 25
8. Eintracht Frankfurt 24
9. FC Porto 23
10. Valencia 23

A surprising result, but remember Ajax had to play six additional matches that none of these listed team had to just to get into the group stage.