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Club
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| Otto
not returning to Haarlem |
05 Dec 2002
|
|
Heini Otto will not be
returning to coach Eerste Divisie Haarlem but is moving on to join the technical
staff of Ajax's youth academy. Otto, who underwent heart surgery in June, took
over as trainer at Ajax's Noord-Holland companion club in October 2000 and will
now be replaced by Leo van Veen, who's been looking after the team since Otto's
illness. It's not the first time he's worked at the ArenA as he was previously
1st team assistant trainer and also coached the B1 team.
|
| Stekelenburg
on the way back! |
19 Nov 2002
|
| Maarten
Stekelenburg made a tentative reappearance in goal for Jong Ajax yesterday
in their 1-1 Amstel Cup (for reserve teams) draw against Jong Utrecht, after
being out of action with an achilles problem. After the match the
young keeper was positive, "It went well and I only experienced a bit
of muscle pain. I didn't have to hold back because of the injury and would
not have played at all if I'd thought I wasn't fit enough! I'm glad
everything went well because I've been out of action for too long already!
I'll play another game for Jong Ajax on Thursday and then it's up to the
trainer (Ronald Koeman) whether or not he decides to field me. In any case
I'll be doing my best to convince him!" |
| Litmanen
and Van der Vaart travel to Lyon |
28 Oct 2002
|
|
Jari Litmanen and Rafeal van der
Vaart will be travelling with Ajax for their Champions League match against
Olympic Lyon tomorrow. Although the Finnish international picked up an
injury during Saturday's 1-1 draw at RKC Waalwijk, it turned out to be a
minor one and he'll be fit enough to play. Rafael van der Vaart has also
been included in the squad after training with his teammates last Friday for
the first time since September. Although he's unlikely to actually play in
the match, trainer Ronald Koeman wants the young midfielder to be match-fit
a.s.a.p. and allowing him to train with his teammates shoudl help to
speed-up that process.
|
| Heitinga's
operation successful |
28 Oct 2002
|
|
John Heitinga's knee operation
has been deemed a success by the specialist, Richard Steadman, who was
treating him and the Ajax defender has already left the hospital in Vail,
Colorado where the surgery took place last Friday. "The leg feels
good and some rest and a lot of ice are all I need at the moment". The
youth international will stay in the united States till Novemebr 8th before
returning to Holland for the rest of his recuperation.
|
| Van
der Vaart back against Lyon? |
26 Oct 2002
|
|
Rafael van der Vaart could well
travel with Ajax for their Champions League match against Lyon next week.
The 19 year-old midfielder had his first training session with the squad
since picking up a knee injury in Oranje's EURO 2004 qualifier against
Belarus at the beginning of September. Ronald Koeman is positive about his
progress and said, "The last phase of Rafael's recovery from an injury
always goes quickly and he needs less time than others to regain his
rhythm."
|
| Babangida
uninterested in return to Ajax |
25 Oct 2002
|
|
Tijjani Babangida has said he's
no intention of returning to Ajax after his current 6 month loan-spell to
Saudi side Al Ittihad is over. The Nigerian winger sees no future for
himself at the ArenA where he's under contract till the summer of 2004. The
29 year-old explained, "At this point in my career I can't afford to
spend time playing in the reserve team or sitting on the bench, which is why
I chose this move to Al Ittihad, They are a top club here and the Brazilian
player Bebeto is also playing for them. I've an option to extend my stay for
another two months and hope to win a trophy with the club." Babangida
arrived at Ajax in 1996 from Roda JC and was a regular face in the team
during his first season but, after Louis van Gaal's departure, he lost his
place and was hired out to Gençlerbirligi and Vitesse.
|
| Beenhakker
has words with Ibrahimovich |
24 Oct 2002
|
|
Leo Beenhakker has had a chat with striker Zlatan Ibrahimovich about his
aggressive behaviour during Tuesday's Champions League match against
Rosenborg when the Swedish international was clearly seen to punch his
opponent. The Amsterdammers' technical director thinks it's an incidental
lapse of self-control under considerable pressure, a question of immaturity
that will pass in time, although Ibrahimovich was 'guilty' of a similar
'offence' last season in the match against Groningen and at times seems to
exhibit a particularly volatile nature. "The youngster had a difficult
match, things didn't go his way and the opposition did everything they could
to stop him. And then something snaps inside these kind of guys. I'd simply
call it part of growing up - file it under the path to maturity."
|
| Ajax
and Rosenborg draw 1-1 |
22 Oct 2002
|
|
Ajax wasted a chance to earn 3
points and take a step closer to the 2nd round of the Champions League.
The Amsterdammers had several golden opportunities to score in theng
half and had by far the most possession but lacked sharpness in the passing
and finishing departments. Zlatan Ibrahimovich, back from injury at the
expense of Mido, had the best chances for the home team in the 9th (18 metre
shot), 10th and 14th (twice failing to connect with Nourdin Boukhari
crosses). The Swedish striker was lucky not to be sent off for stupidly punching an opponent early in theng
half as his frustrations boiled over. Rosenborg came close to scoring when Harald
Brattbakk missed narrowly with a header. Ibrahimovich finally found the back
of the net, tapping in a Trabelsi cross in the 41st. After the break the Norwegians fought back
while Ajax were unable to press
home their advantage and wrap up the match with a 2nd goal. Nourdin
Boukhari saw a fine shot go just wide by a whisker after an hour's play and Ibrahimovic
also missed anotherng in the 70th. He continued to commit unnecessary
fouls, risking a red card and was soon replaced by Mido. Ajax fell further
and further back from then on and paid the price when Azar Karadas' 14 metre
shot was cleared off the line by Jelle Van Damme who, in a reflex, used his
hands to stop the ball from going into the net. He was sent off and Dagfinn Enerly
put away the spot-shot to give Rosenborg a point to take home. Koeman will not
be amused.
|
| Ajax
legions expect their team to win!! |
22 Oct 2002
|
|
A veritable legion of Ajax fans
in Holland, and elsewhere of course, are expecting their team to do well
tonight in the Amsterdammers Champions League clash with Norwegian side
Rosenborg. If they win they are more or less guaranteed a place in the 2nd
round, needing only three points from their remaining games, away against
Olympic Lyon and home to Inter Milan. They have, however, plenty of injury
problems in terms of their goalkeepers to deal with - Maarten Stekelenburg,
Henk Timmer and Joey Didulica have been on and off the injured-list all
season and Bogdan Lobont has yet to play a game this season. Stekelenburg's
latest injury during the 6-2 win against AZ on Saturday meant that Ronald
Koeman has even had to ask the 'retired' Fred Grim to return and occupy a
place on the bench for tonight's match. Fortunately the Ajax trainer is able
to welcome back Cristian Chivu, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Jelle Van Damme. It
will not be an easy match because Rosenborg are fighting for C-L survival
after two draws and a 5-0 defeat by Olympique Lyon. Ajax have also
only won one of their last five matches against Norwegian opponents - the
last being a 4-0 win against Lillestrøm SK back in 1977. Victory tonight
will at least guarantee a place in the UEFA Cup if they fail to make it
through to the next round of the C-L.
|
| Ajax
ask Grim to keep one-more-time |
21 Oct 2002
|
|
Ronald Koeman has asked Fred Grim
to take up a place on the bench for one last time in order to help Ajax out
as they prepare to face Rosenborg tomorrow in the Champions League. Grim is
currently the Amsterdammers' keepers-trainer after hanging up his boots (and
gloves) at the end of last season but has been enrolled for Champions League
duty just in case and can be fielded tomorrow if necessary! The no.1 choice
Maarten Stekelenburg plus backup keepers Bogdan Lobont and Joey Didulica are
all now out of action and even reserve keeper Robert Zwinkels is injured
which means that Ajax are currently without a reserve keeper. Henk Timmer
took over from Stekelenburg during Saturday's Ere Divisie match against AZ
and will be taking his place in goal for the match against Rosenborg BK with
Fred Grim on the bench!
|
| Van
der Vaart in cautious return to training |
20 Oct 2002
|
|
Rafael van der Vaart has made a
cautious return to training after picking up a knee injury in Oranje's EURO
2004 qualifier against Belarus. Although an operation was not necessary it
was still expected that he'd be out of action for 6-8 weeks. Van der Baart
would like to return for Ajax's Champions league match against Inter Milan
on November 12th but coach Ronald Koeman thinks that's too soon.
|
| Heitinga
flies to US for operation |
20 Oct 2002
|
|
Ajax defender John Heitinga is
travelling to the United States later this week for a knee operation to be
performed by Colorado-based specialist Richard Steadman. The 18 year-old
picked up the injury in the match against NAC on September 29th after only
recently recovering from two previous knee operations.
|
| Ajax
beat AZ 6-2 |
19 Oct 2002
|
|
Ajax
lineup: Stekelenburg - Trabelsi, Bergdølmo,
Yakubu, De Jong - Galásek, Litmanen, Witschge - Van der Meyde, Mido, Sikora.
AZ
lineup: Moens - Tobiasen, Wijker, Opdam, De Cler - Meerdink, Lindenbergh,
Robbemond, Van Galen - Nelisse, Perez.
AZ got off to a fast start against Ajax in the
ArenA, Kenneth Perezng the score for the Alkmaarders in the 3rd
minute and Barry van Galen's attempt, a couple of minutes later, hitting the
bar. Ajax's Egyptian striker Ahmed Mido Hossam, replacing the injured Zlatan
Ibrahimovich, scored twice in the 10th and 12th minutes. The first was a fine
header from a Van der Meyde cross and the second a simple goal from close
by. Jari Litmanen added a 3rd in the 22nd to give the
Amsterdammers a comfortable 3-1 half-time lead. The Finnish international and
crowd favourite has clearly recaptured his form of old and came up with a fabulous
lob to beat Oscar Moens two minutes into the 2nd half. Kenneth Perez scored
his 2nd on the hour to close the gap as AZ fought back but substitute
Nourdin Boukhari put away two of his own in the 89th and 92nd minutes for
the final 6-2 score.
|
| ArenA
nominated for C-L Finals |
19 Oct 2002
|
|
The Dutch FA (KNVB) have
nominated the Amsterdam ArenA as candidate venue for the 2004 and 2005
Champions League finals. There are 7 other stadiums competing for the
prestige involved in hosting the event: Olympia Stadion (Berlin), Arena
AufSchalke (Gelsenkirchen), AOL Arena (Hamburg), Luzhniki (Moscow), Stade de
France (Paris), Millennium Stadium (Cardiff) and Vicente Calderón (Madrid).
UEFA will announce the 'winner' in February next year. The Amsterdam Arena
previously hosted the C-L Final in 1998 when the match was between Real
Madrid and Juventus, the Spanish side winning 1-0.
|
| Lobont
back in training at Ajax |
19 Oct 2002
|
|
Things are starting to look up in
the goal-stopping department at the ArenA. Ajax coach Ronald Koeman will be
relieved to see Bogdan Lobont and Joey Didulica are back from their
respective injuries, although they are training separately from the group
for the time being, while Maarten Stekelenburg and Henk Timmer are
training as usual. "It's great to be back on pitch after two and a half
months away," said Lobont, who thought he'd be out till after the
winter-break with his shoulder injury, while Australian goalie Didulica is
still only able to do a limited amount of training and it will be longer
before he's ready to return.
|
| Mido
back against AZ |
19 Oct 2002
|
|
Mido will be back in the Ajax
lineup facing AZ in the ArenA tonight. The Egyptian striker, who was dropped
a couple of weeks ago for unprofessional behaviour, replaces the Swedish
international Zlatan Ibrahimovic who's still recovering from the head injury
he picked up oin Sweden's match against Hungary. Although coach Ronald
Koeman was told the bad news this week that John O'Brien (achilles) and
Maxwell (ankle) will take longer to recover from their injuries than
originally he's also received the good news that Victor Sikora, Andy van der
Meyde, Cristian Chivu and Jari Litmanen are all fit.
|
| Victor
Sikora ready for AZ |
17 Oct 2002
|
|
Ajax's Victor Sikora is fit to
play in this Saturday's home match against AZ. The winger was in full flight
again during training in Wednesday after recovering from his knee injury and
is raring to go! Ajax were forced to train with only 6 players and 2 keepers
due to the many absentees who were playing internationals.
|
| Ajax
track Razvan Rat |
15 Oct 2002
|
|
Ajax have been tracking the
talented Romanian defender Razvan Rat who's currently playing for Rapid
Boekarest. The 21 year-old plays at left-back and has a price-tag of €2
million Euros but other clubs are also interested, such as Galatasaray and
Dynamo Kiev. Although Ajax-coach Ronald Koeman is positive after a first
assessment of the youngster the player he's said that Mr. Rat is not the
only player they are looking at.
|
| Chivu
not in need of knee surgery! |
15 Oct 2002
|
|
An MRI scan carried out on
Cristian Chivu's knee has revealed that the Ajax defender is not severly
injured and no suregry is needed. The Romanian international is 'simply'
suffering from a severe strain of the knee, resulting from a series of tough
matches, and all the fears of recent days concerning a possible long absence
have proved to be unwarranted. It's unclear though whether or not he'll be
fit in time to play the Ere Divisie match against AZ this Saturday.
|
| Black-eye
for Zlatan only damage |
14 Oct 2002
|
|
Ajax will be relieved to hear
that their Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovcih has only a black-eye to
remind him of his clash with Hungarian goalie Gábor Király in Saturday's
EURO 2004 qualifier. He can't remember anything about either the goal he
scored or the blow he received to the head which was thought had left him
with a case of concussion. Zlatan wants to be fit in time to play in
Wednesday's match against Portugal but the Swedish team's doctor has advised
him not to play due to the risk of aggravating the injury with more serious
consequences.
|
| Chivu
returns to Ajax with knee injury |
14 Oct 2002
|
|
Christian Chivu is returning
early to Amsterdam after picking up an injury in Romania's EURO 2004
qualifier against Norway on Saturday. The central defender will now miss his
country's match against Luxembourg on Wednesday. It's unclear how serious
the injury is with the Romanians fearing he'll need an operation which will
keep him out of action for 3 weeks while Ajax are more optimistic and await
the results of a full examination which will be made today.
|
| Ibrahimovich
has concussion after k.o. |
13 Oct 2002
|
|
Ajax striker Zlatan OIbrahimovich
is suffering from a slight case of concussion resulting from a blow he
received after heading in the equalizer during the 1-1 EURO 2004 qualifier
between Sweden and Hungary. Hungarian goalie Gábor Király tried to punch
away the ball but connected with Zlatan's head instead and the striker had
to be carried off k.o. ! Fortunately neither Sweden nor Ajax have need of
his services during the coming days, the Amsterdammers playing their next
Ere Divisie match on October 18th.
|
| Ibrahimovich
scores equalizer for Sweden |
13 Oct 2002
|
|
Ajax's Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovich
prevented an embarassing home defeat for his country against Hungary
yesterday by scoring the equalizer in the EURO 2004 1-1 draw. After Krisztián
Kenesei punished a weak start by Sweden with a 4th minute goal
Zlatan, Fredrik Ljungberg and Michael Svensson all had several chances
in theng half to draw level. Sweden pushed Hungary well back into
their half during the 2nd 45 minutes and were rewarded 15 minutes before
time with Ibrahimovich's goal which gives them their 2nd draw in a
row.
|
| Babangida
happy with Arabian move |
13 Oct 2002
|
|
Our thanks to Mohamed S. Chbaro
at http://www.middleeastfootball.com
for bringing us up to date on this one!
Nigerian striker Tijjani
Babangida has been praising his former Ajax teammate Ahmed 'Mido' Hossam's
tip that encouraged him to move to Saudi Arabaia and Al-Ittihad of Jeddah.
"I'm really grateful to my Egyptian friend, and teammate, at Ajax
Amsterdam Ahmed Hossam, for his advice regarding Al-Ittihad," Babangida
told London-based Saudi daily paper Al-Hayat on Saturday. "He made me
aware of the fans' increasing desire to see some silverware and also told me
about the distinguished status the club has always enjoyed locally and in
Asia," he added.
"Still, the main factor influencing my move was the way Al-Ittihad
officials approached me. I am thankfull to all those who were behind the
signing, and am really hopefull I will be able to pay them back on the
pitch," he underlined. Asked about the problems he witnessed with Ajax,
Babangida had this to say: "It wasn't easy to deal with coach Ronald
Koeman at the start of the new season in Holland. I made my position clear
when voicing my desire to be given a regular first-team choice place within
the squad, but Koeman reiterated that no player is granted such
status."
|
| Ajax
want to dump foreign interests |
12 Oct 2002
|
|
According to a story in Belgian
newspaper 'Het Nieuwsblad' Ajax want to sell off their interests in foreign
clubs. Not only do the Amsterdammers want to dump their remaining 72% percent
interest in Germinal Beerschot Antwerpen but also their shares in Ashanti
Goldfields (Ghana) and Ajax Cape Town (South Africa). Ajax don't profit
sufficiently from the involvement to make it worth while continuing and
they've warned their shareholders that there is also little prospect of a
profit from last season due to the stagnation of the transfer market.
|
| Van
't Schip returns to Ajax on Monday |
11 Oct 2002
|
|
John van
't Schip returns to the ArenA on Monday to succeed Gerard van der Lem as
coach with the Amsterdammers' reserve team, Jong Ajax. Van
der Lem is leaving to take up his post with the Saudi FA on Tuesday
where he'll be presented as the national team's new technical director. For
Van 't Schip it's his second return to the ArenA - the 38 year-old
former right-winger played 348 matches for Ajax before a back injury
brought his career to an end. Between 1997 and the summer of 2001 he was a
member of the club's technical staff, working as youth coach and as
assistant to Co Adriaanse. He left to take over as trainer with Twente but
resigned after a disappointing season in Enschede, recently signing a 3 year
contract with Ajax to take over from Van der Lem.
|
| Chivu
plays against Norway |
11 Oct 2002
|
| Koopman
joins Van der Lem's Saudi staff |
10 Oct 2002
|
|
Despite his recent announcement
that he would never work abroad again, Dutch trainer Martin Koopman will be
joining Gerard van der Lem in Saudi Arabia as part of the national team's
technical staff. Koopman's comments came after a disastrous experience with
African Congo club Vita which ended without him receiving any payment
whatsoever for his services and, the final indignation, saw him forced to
leave his personal possessions behind when he returned to Holland. Van der Lem
has somehow managed to persuade the former Veendam trainer to join his staff
as field-trainer which means that his lineup is now complete! It includes Co
Jager (his former assistant at AZ) and keepers-trainer Jan Nederburgh.
|
| Reports
of Chivu injury exaggerated |
09 Oct 2002
|
|
The reports that have been
circulating claiming that Cristian Chivu is faced with a possible knee
operation seem to have been exaggerated. As a result of the stories being
published in the press Ajax have contacted the Romanian FA who've assured
Edwin Goedhart, head of the Amsterdammers medical team, that the injury is
not that serious. Chivu is expected to be able to play for his country this
Saturday in their EURO 2004 qualifier against Norway.
|
| Chivu
fears knee operation |
09 Oct 2002
|
|
Ronald Koeman will have to miss
captain Cristian Chivu for the coming 3 Champions League matches after the
Romanian defender picked up a knee injury in the classic clash with
arch-rivals Feyenoord in the Kuip last Sunday. It looks like he'll have to
go into hospital for an operation to repair the damage and could be out of
action for 4 weeks.
|
| Ajax
miss Wamberto for 2 weeks |
09 Oct 2002
|
|
Ajax will have to miss Brazilian
forward Wamberto for the next two weeks after he picked up an ankle problem
during the recent 1-2 win against Feyenoord. The timing of the injury means
that it will not present too much of a problem for the club or player as the
following Ere Divisie match is against AZ on October 19th.
|
| Babangida
on loan to Al Ittihad |
08 Oct 2002
|
|
Ajax's Tijjani Babangida will play out the rest
of the season for Saudi club Al Ittihad on a loan deal for 6 months. The
Nigerian forward, who joined the Amsterdammers from Roda back in 1996 and
scored 22 goal in a total of 102 appearances, was
out of favour at the ArenA and had been training with the Jong Ajax squad.
The last details of the move, which we first wrote
about a couple of weeks ago, have just been completed. It's Babangida's
3rd loan-spell in as many years after earlier adventures with Turkish side
Genclerbirligi in 2000/2001 and last season with Vitesse.
|
| Heitinga
travels to US for treatment |
07 Oct 2002
|
| Litmanen
lyrical after 1-2 at Feyenoord |
07 Oct 2002
|
|
"These are always the best
kind of games to play in", beamed Jari Litmanen after the classic duel
between Feyenoord and Ajax yesterday. The Fin gets himself well charged up
for these confrontations as he showed once more by scoring his 9th goal in 8
matches against the Rotterdammers. Despite Feyenoord's 2nd half onslaught
both sides agreed that the result was a fair one. "We began ok but were
ko-ed by theng goal and are lucky that we weren't 0-3 or even 0-4 down
at halftime!" said Feyenoord-trainer Bert van Marwijk. Ronald Koeman
was satisfied: "We failed to seal the match in theng half by
missing too may chances, with the result that Feyenoord were able to get
back into the match and, although they didn't cause us too many problems,
the result could just have easily been 2-2."
|
| Ajax
win at 1-2 at Feyenoord |
06 Oct 2002
|
|
Feyenoord
lineup: Zoetebier - Emerton, De Haan, Paauwe, Rzasa - Song C G,
Bosvelt, Ono, Pardo - Buffel, Van Hooijdonk.
Ajax
lineup: Stekelenburg - Trabelsi, Bergdølmo, Chivu, Van Damme - Galásek,
Litmanen, Witschge - Pienaar, Ibrahimovic, Wamberto. Ajax
go equal top after this away win at the Kuip, just behind PSV on goal
difference. After anng spell where there was little to choose between
the two teams till theng goal, beautifully
curled in by Wamberto. From then on the Amsterdammers were completely in control during the
rest of the
half. Ajax
were again inspired by the presence of Jari Litamanen, the Fin forming the
hub of a well organised midfield. He missed out on several chances to score
but a solo move by Steven Pienaar set up Litmanen with the 2nd goal in the
43rd. The 0-2 half-time score was richly deserved. Ajax started off in the
same vein after the break but couldn't maintain the tempo, allowing Bert van Marwijk's team to get back into the match.
The half-time introduction of Van Persie and Kalou, for Thomas Buffel and
Sebastián Pardo, had introduced a bit
more aggression into the Rotterdammer's game which at first didn't amount to
more than a shot on the bar by Van Persie and the one goal by Pierre van
Hooijdonk in the 56th minute. Feyenoord kept plugging away and Ajax had to hold on from then on while the
Rotterdammers got the best chances to score but both Van Hooijdonk and
Bonaventure Kalou failed to beat Maarten Stekelenburg. Feyenoord are now 6
points adrift of the top-two.
|
| Feyenoord
v Ajax - Classic Dutch Derby |
05 Oct 2002
|
Tomorrow
is the first classic derby of the season with two age-old opponents from
Holland's two largest towns standing off against each other in one of the
best stadiums in Europe for atmosphere and football - the Rotterdam Kuip.
The distractions of this week's Champions League football has overshadowed
the approach of this duel between the Dutch giants while there's already a
lot at stake, especially for Feyenoord.
A defeat at home by Ajax
would be a major setback early in the season,ng up the gap between the two clubs to 8 points. "This match is
particularly important because Holland will only be able to enter two teams
in the Champions League next season, meaning an end-of-season 3rd place is
no longer good enough", explained Ajax-trainer Ronald Koeman.
"A defeat would be bad for the team's spirit and morale",
said Feyenoord defender Kees van Wonderen. It's doubtful whether he'll
actually be fit to play after suffering a hamstring injury which meant he
missed Tuesday's C-L match against Kiev. "You used to be able to become
champions by beating the small teams but nowadays you've got beat
Ajax to win." The coming two weeks rest, due to the imminent
internationals taking place, will be most welcome for both teams. Feyenoord
have played 12 matches in the last 6 weeks while Ajax have only
played 10! The tell-tale and ever growing list of players who've gone on the
injured list says it all!
Ajax will be glad to welcome the return of the ever influential
Jari Litmanen in time for the match. He stayed at home while the team
travelled to Norway for the C-L match against Rosenborg
and worked in his own very personal, driven style to get himself fit again
after picking up his hamstring injury. Young goalie Maarten Stekelenburg is
also engaged in a similar struggle to regain fitness in time for tomorrow's
match. The timing couldn't be better for Koeman
as his goalkeeper problems just keep on growing with Joey Didulica, who'd
replaced Stekelenburg when he picked up his injury, himself dropping out
with an ankle injury. Of the 5 keepers in Amsterdam not one is fully fit -
Robert Zwinkels and Bogdan Lobont have shoulder problems plus even Henk
Timmer is being troubled by a hamstring injury but he'll take a place on the
bench.
|
| Tomás
Galásek gets Czech Republic callup
|
05 Oct 2002
|
|
Ajax
midfielder Tomás Galásek
has been called up for the Czech Republic's EURO 2004 qualifiers against
Moldova and Belarus. Coach Brückner's team plays in and against Moldova on
October 12th and play host to Belarus on the 16th in Teplice.
|
| Ajax's
keeper problems continue |
03 Oct 2002
|
|
Ajax's goalkeeper problems continue!
Joey Didulica, who recently replaced the
injured Maarten Stekelenburg, has picked up an ankle injury in last night's
Champions League match against Rosenborg. The Australian goalie will almost
certainly be unfit to play on Sunday when the Amsterdammers visit the Rotterdam
Kuip to play Feyenoord. He's the 3rd goalie to go on the sick-list after Bogdan
Lobont (shoulder) and Maarten Stekelenburg (hamstring) which leaves Henk
Timmer, on hire from AZ, as the only
fit goal-stopper left! Ironically, Timmer was on loan to Feyenoord last season
and Sunday's match could well be his first Ajax-experience of the season since
he arrived from the Alkmaarders.
|
| Ajax
and Brutil Hosé part |
03 Oct 2002
|
| Rosenborg
and Ajax in 0-0 draw |
02 Oct 2002
|
|
Rosenborg
lineup: Arason, Olsen, Hoftun, Basma, Saarinen, Strand,
Skammelsrud, Berg, Karadas, Braatbakk, Frode Johnsen. Ajax
lineup: Didulica, Trabelsi, Chivu, bergdølmo, Van Damme, Van Halst,
Witschge, Galásek, Wamberto, Ibrahimovich, Mido.
Ajax
went home without the three points they had ample opportunity to score and
which would have earned them the table topping position in their group. Sloppy finishing by
their strike-duo Mido and Ibrahimovich meant they left the stadium with
empty hands. During
theng quarter of an hour both teams were equally balanced with
Rosenborg looking the more threatening from corners while the visitors
slowly warmed to their task. Wamberto had the best
chance for Ajax shortly after in the 19th minute. The diminutive Brazilian
was Ajax's best striker in theng 30 minutes as the Amsterdammers
managed to contain the Rosenborg attacks without too much trouble while
failing to create many of their own. Finally Mido and Ibrahimovich began to
get into gear and in the 34th they had their best
opportunity in front of goal but Mido was judged offside. Only a minute
later Skammelsrud shot just over for the Norwegian side. Witschge had
a shot saved in the 37th as the Amsterdammers began to move the ball around
a bit faster and pressed forward. Mido had a great chance to push the ball
into the back of the net in the 40th but he was too slow. The Egyptian
striker served up an impressive pass to
Ibrahimovich in the 42nd which the young Swede took well, raced forward but blasted just
wide. Australian keeper Joey Didulica, in his European debut, grew in confidence as the half
progressed and it was a good thing as Rosenborg applied pressure close to the half-time whistle. Ajax could have been a couple
of goals up as they left for the dressing room but were let down by
less-than-perfect finishing in front of goal.
Koeman had some things to say to his team during the break and they came
out looking sharper. Ibrahimovich blasted just over in the 50th but, as the 2nd
half progressed, Ajax were again put under real pressure by the home team.
Koeman decided to replace Ibrahimovich, who'd been too sloppy too often, by
Van der Meyde and Van Halst by Winter. Witschge was also replaced by Maxwell
as the Amsterdammers tried to find that goal, but it just wasn't happening.
Ajax survived the 2nd half and a stormy closing quarter-of-an-hour without conceding a goal but Koeman will not be pleased with his team's performance,
though the
result could have been worse.
|
| Ajax
field mix of youth and experience |
02 Oct 2002
|
|
Ajax will be fielding an interesting lineup
tonight against Rosenborg with a mixture of veterans and young upstarts.
Christian Chivu, who now looks likely to play, will be flanked by Trabelsi,
new-kid-on-the-block Jelle van Damme and Bergdølmo, playing against his
former club. The midfield is in the hands of experienced players such as
Galasèk, Witschge and Van Halst. Wamberto, who's not been seen much
recently, will be given a place behind 'bad boys' Mido and Ibrahimovic. In
fact the formation looks very much like the one who put on such a fine C-L
perfomance against Glasgow Celtic last year. Likely lineup: Didulica,
Trabelsi, Chivu, Bergdolmo, Van Damme, Galasèk, Van Halst, Wamberto,
Witschge, Mido, Ibrahimovic.
|
| Chivu
plays against Rosenborg despite pain |
02 Oct 2002
|
|
Christian Chivu has decided to play in tonight's
Champions League match against Rosenborg despite the bruised rib (picked up in
last Sunday's 2-2 EreDivisie draw against NAC) that's still troubling him.
"I'm determined to play and, with painkillers and Romanian willpower, I
will do exactly that!" said the 21 year-old defender who impressed against
Inter Milan last week. For the Amsterdammers' team captain it was 'business as
usual' as he took part in the last training session yesterday in Trondheim.
|
| Rosenborg
- Ajax... a preview |
02 Oct 2002
|
|
Rosenborg may be the
least illustrious opponent in Ajax's C-L group, they could well prove to be the
Amsterdammers' most difficult team to beat. In the past they have been a very
consistent side who've managed to qualify for the last 8 Champions League
tournaments, something no other team has done, and
they have built a reputation as 'giant-killers'. They made their C-L debut in
the 1995/96 season and had their best result the
following season when they got to the quarter-finals, losing to Juventus (1-1
and 0-2). The current lineup doesn't look strong enough to do that well this
time as, although they are on course for their 11th consecutive domestic title,
they have not played convincingly and have been too inconsistent. There have
also been several player-departures: John Carew, Jan
Derk Sørensen and Andre Bergdølmø to Valencia, Borussia Dortmund and Ajax.
It's been left to the veterans Bent
Skammelsrud (36) and Erik Hoftun (33) too fill the gap while Frode Johnsen (28)
and Harald
Brattbak (31) have to score the goals.
|
| Chivu
travels with Ajax to Norway |
01 Oct 2002
|
|
Christian Chivu has travelled with the Ajax squad
to Norway for tomorrow night's Champions League match against Rosenborg,
though it remains doubtful whether he'll actually play. The Ajax captain
picked up a bruised rib in Sunday's Ere Divisie clash with NAC in the ArenA
and looked certain to be left at home. However, the injury is not as serious
as originally thought, though he's still not 100%, and coach Ronald Koeman
remains hopeful that he can field the Romanian international.
|
| Litmanen
unfit for Rosenborg match |
30 Sep 2002
|
Jari Litmanen will not be able to play in Ajax's
Champions League match on Wednesday, when the Amsterdammers travel to face
Norwegian side Rosenborg BK, as the Finnish international is still being
troubled by the hamstring injury he picked up in the C-L match against Inter
Milan. He hopes to be back for the classic derby with Feyenoord in the Kuip next
Sunday.
Cristian Chivu still looks unlikely to play in Norway due to the bruised rib he
picked up in Sunday's Ere Divisie clash with NAC and young Johhny Heitinga was
unfortunate enough to pick up a serious knee injury in the same match which will
keep him out of action for at least 6 months. It all adds to Ronald Koeman's
injury worries with Maarten Stekelenburg and John O'Brien both out with
hamstring injuries.
|
| Johnny
Heitinga out for 6 months |
30 Sep 2002
|
| Chivu
misses C-L match with bruised rib |
30 Sep 2002
|
|
Ajax's Christian
Chivu has bruised a rib during the Ere Divisie match against NAC and will
miss Tuesday's Champions League away match against Norwegian side
Rosenborg.
|
| Ajax
and NAC in 2-2 |
29 Sep 2002
|
Ajax
lineup: Joey Didulica, Hatem Trabelsi, Christian Chivu,
Abubakari Yakubu, Jelle van Damme, Tomas Galasek, Richard Witschge,
Steven Pienaar, Victor Sikora, Zlatan
Ibrahimovic.
NAC lineup:Gabor Babos, Csaba Feher,
Rob Penders, Mark Schenning, Nebojsa Gudelj, Earnest Stewart, Alfred
Schreuder, Jurgen Colin, Igor Korneev, Orlando Engelaar, Kevin Bobson.
Ajax got off to an absolutely disastrous start
this afternoon and can count themselves lucky to have earned themselves a
point out of this match. There were major changes made by Ronald Koeman to
his lineup with Steven Pienaar starting in midfield alongside Richard
Witschge, Sikora and Boukhari on the wings and no Jari Litmanen! A Trabelsi
blunder allowed Kevin Bobson, on loan to NAC from Ajax, to put the visitors
head after only 3 minutes. An equally incredible defensive slipup by the
Tunisian defender allowed Amrican international Earnest Stewart to increase
the Breda side's lead in the 21st. Mido was brought on for Yakubu later on
in the half and Van der Meyde for Sikora to inject some energy into a
lethargic looking frontline and later Chivu departed with a worrying injury
to be replaced by Johnny Heitinga. Some very unhappy fans whistled their
team into the dressing-room at halftime. Koeman gave his lineup a good
talking to and Ajax reemerged with a better attitude, Zlatan
Ibrahimovic finally slotting home a simple goal in the 47th and Mido scoring
a fine goal in the 56th from a Zlatan pass. A lot of stoppages disrupted the
flow of play from then on and the Amsterdammers lost their momentum. In fact
they were lucky that NAC substitutes Boussaboun and Van den Eede weren't a
bit sharper or else they'd have dropped 3 points.
|
| Didulica
keeps for Ajax against NAC |
27 Sep 2002
|
|
Joey Didulica will be keeping goal for Ajax this
Sunday in the Ere Divisie match against NAC after Ronald Koeman chose the
Australian in preference to Henk Timmer as replacement for the injured
Maarten Stekelenburg. It will be Didulica's first appearance for Ajax this
season. The 24 year-old was originally being lined-up as Fred Grim's
successor but picked up an ankle injury during the pre-season preparations.
Romanian keeper Bogdan Lobont was already on the injured list at the time
forcing Ajax to look around for temporary backup and they eventually signed
a loan-deal with AZ's Henk Timmer to bring him to the ArenA. As it happens
young Maarten Stekelenburg has become the regular keeper for the
Amsterdammers until he picked up his injury during Wednesday's Champions
League match against Inter Milan.
|
| Al-Ahly
- Ajax friendly a step closer! |
27 Sep 2002
|
|
Our grateful thanks to Mohamed S. Chbaro
of middleeastfootball.com
for this latest story to emerge from the Gulf region!
Egyptian daily newspaper Al-Ahram revealed
yesterday that reigning African champions Al-Ahly have been informed by the
African Football Confederation that Ajax Amsterdam have been nominated as
their opposition for the Meridian Cup to be held in Cairo in January
next year. It's a snub to local
arch-rivals Zamalek who were reported to be trying to get the Amsterdammers
to come and play against them back in August!
The Meridian Cup is an invitational competition aiming at promoting the
status of football throughout Africa, and will have the Egyptian capital as
its venue next January. “Al-Ahly were a natural choice after they claimed
the ‘Club of the Century’ award in Africa last year,” underlined a
club spokesman. “The club administration will discuss the CAF offer in its
next meeting this coming week and we hope that it will indeed lead to a
high-profile match that will boost the image of Egyptian football throughout
the world,” the spokesman added.
Al-Ahly, Egypt’s most successful and popular club, have been in impressive
mood against European opponents in the past two years, narrowly beating Real
Madrid 1-0 on August 2001 before last month handing out a 2-1 defeat to
Italian giants AS Rome. Both of these gala matches were held in a packed
Cairo International Stadium. If the game were to be held against Ajax, it
would be the first official confrontation between Egyptian and Dutch sides.
|
| Stekelenburg
out for several weeks? |
27 Sep 2002
|
|
Maarten Stekelenburg will miss Ajax's
match against NAC on Sunday after picking up a hamstring injury in the Champions
League match against Inter Milan. 'It looks like he'll be out of action for a
few weeks," said trainer Ronald Koeman. The 19 year-old keeper had to drop
out half-way through the first half of Wednesday's match and his replacement Henk
Timmer injured his big-toe but will be fit to play on Sunday. Koeman will have
the 'luxury' of choosing between Timmer and Joey
Didulica, who's back from his shoulder injury and has already played a
couple of matches for the Amsterdammers' reserve team Jong Ajax.
|
| Italian
press full of praise for Ajax |
26 Sep 2002
|
Despite the fact that Ajax lost 1-0 to Inter
Milan the Italian press has had almost nothing but words of praise for the
young Ajax team with special mentions/commendations for Christian Chivu and
Jari Litmanen.
'La Gazzetta dello Sport' had this to say: 'After only a few minutes it was
clear that Ajax were a far more flowing ensemble than Inter. As soon as the
Dutch moved forward they looked as if they were going to inflict pain on
Inter. Jari Litmanen was, paradoxically, responsible for most of the
acceleration within the Ajax lineup, while his age and lack of matchplay
would indicate that he's the least likely candidate to provide the bursts of
speed required. He was the Amsterdammers' absolute play-maker.'
There were also words of praise for captain Christian Chivu, "Every
time that Inter tried to threaten the Ajax-end Chivu was there ready to
stifle all attempts, a veritable Nesta for Ajax! He intercepted every ball
and was solely responsible for the build-up of attacking moves."
'La Corriera della Sera' even went as far as to give Ajax a place among
Europe's top clubs. "Only the spectators who refuse to look at anything
else but the result is it possible to claim that Ajax are a second-rate
team. As far as both athleticism and tactical insight are concerned the
young team is clearly already advanced. Precisely when it seemed that Ajax
had attained domination, and looked close to unravelling the Inter defence,
came the shock of Crepo's goal."
'La Stampa' was in agreement but had a few words of criticism, "Ajax
have a young, brave team but they tend to be rather too narcisistic and,
although they look good and move well they tend to make too many errors."
|
| Koeman's
nightmare comes true |
26 Sep 2002
|
|
Ronald Koeman had warned his team before last
night's Champions League match that Italian teams always make their
opponents look better, lulling them into a false sense of security only to
strike when you're least expecting it. "It's very disappointing to make
one mistake and lose the match", the Ajax coach said. "We played
better, had more possession but lacked that bit extra that makes all the
difference at this (or any other) level. In attack we were not sharp, we
were also too sloppy and paid the price, while Inter's quality is to get the
maximum out of a match with a minimum of effort, even when they play badly".
Koeman could at least be happy with the performance of 18 year-old defender
Jelle Van Damme who made his debut as replacement for the injured John
O'Brien. "He played a good match after an unsteady start and I'm
satisfied with his performance - he did well!"
|
| Inter
Milan beat Ajax 1-0 |
25 Sep 2002
|
|
Inter
Milan lineup: Toldo - Zanetti, Materazzi, Córdoba, Pasquale - Buruk,
Di Biagio, Belözoglu, Dalmat - Vieri, Crespo.
Ajax
lineup: Stekelenburg - Trabelsi, Pasanen, Chivu, Van Damme - Galásek,
Litmanen, Maxwell - Van der Meyde, Ibrahimovic, Sikora.
Ajax had another footballing lesson as the
Amsterdammers showed they can play excellent-looking football but consistently
fail to close in for the kill when it matters most. Litmanen looked the absolute
professional that he is, and all his talents were on display as Ajax got off to
a fine start, leaving Inter looking rather powerless to cope with the visitors'
talents and midfield organisation in theng hour's football.
Ajax had more than their fair share of chances but Zlatan Ibrahimovic especially
wasted too many of them and their usual over-casual attitude let them down. Tomás
Galásek and Maxwell had a go with distance shots but they didn't seriously
trouble goalie Francesco Toldo. As the second half progressed the play became
rather aggressive as frustrations and irritations came to the boil. It was left to
Hernán Crespo to give Inter the points in the 75th, scoring from a Matías
Almeyda pass. It was an undeserved goal and a big disappointment for Ajax who
never looked like recovering enough to equalize, even with fresh-blood Mido and
Pienaar in the side. They will get their chance for revenge in a couple of weeks
in the ArenA.
|
| Inter-Ajax
a battle of opposites |
25 Sep 2002
|
|
A battle of opposites is one description of
tonight's Champions clash between Ajax and Inter Milan - red-and-white
against blue-and-black, attack against defence, youth against experience.
The two teams have only met once in Europe and that was on May 31st 1972 in
the Kuip in the battle for the European Cup Winners' Cup. Johan Cruijff was
hero-of-the-hour-and-a-half, scoring twice to give the Amsterdammers the Cup
for the second time in a row. It may seem a long time ago but even fresher
in the Inter collective memory will be their UEFA Cup semi-final defeat at
the hands-and-feet of Feyenoord last season. Ronaldo has left for Real
Madrid enabling Inter to add two new players in the shape of Argentinian
striker Hernán Crespo and veteran defender Fabio Cannavaro but the latter
will be missing tonight due to the red card he picked up against Rosenborg.
Ronald Koeman's team is now clearly, and very positively, under the guiding
influence of Jari Litmanen who helped them to a nail-biting 2-1 win against
Olympique Lyon in the ArenA last week. Whether the Fin will be fit to play
tonight remains to be seen, while defender John O'Brien will be missing,
most likely replaced by 18 year-old Jelle ten Damme. Inter have never lost a
Champions League match in their own Giuseppe Meazza stadium and will not be
planning to make an exception tonight.
|
| Koeman
takes Van Damme to Milan |
24 Sep 2002
|
|
Ronald Koeman has decided to take the young
Belgian defender Jelle van Damme to Milan for tomorrow's Champions League
clash. It's a dream come true for Van Damme who's been picked to replace
American international John O'Brien. The 18 year-old who can't quite believe
his luck. "I missed most of the pre-season preparations due to the
matches I played for the Belgian youth team and it was difficult for
me to readjust when I returned to Ajax. Recently things have improved and
last week I finally started to feel more confident, so the news that my
trainer has chosen me to replace O'Brien is an opportunity not to be missed."
|
| Heitinga
called up for C-L clash with Milan |
24 Sep 2002
|
|
Johnny Heitinga is back in the Ajax squad and
will be travelling to Milan for tomorrow's Champions League clash. The
18 year-old defender has been out of action for some considerable time after
undergoing two separate knee operations. He's been chosen to reinforce
the squad due to John O'Brien's injury and Yakubu's unavilability due to the
red card he picked up in last week's match. "I've been out of action
for a long time with my injury and it's taken some time for me to catch up
with the rest of the squad but I'm finally feeling fit again and the
trainer's call didn't come as a complete surprise."
|
| John
van 't Schip returns to Ajax |
23 Sep 2002
|
|
It's been confirmed that John van 't Schip will be
returning to Ajax to take over coaching Jong Ajax when Gerard
van der Lem departs for Saudi Arabia. The 38 year-old former right winger
has signed a deal for 3 years with his old club where he was player, reserve
team trainer and assistant to Co Adriaanse. before leaving for
an unhappy season with Twente, where he resigned in July. When exactly he'll
start work is dependent on when exactly Van der Lem leaves because, although his
new deal with the Saudi FA begins in July 2003, Ajax have been asked to let him
go earlier, even as early as the beginning of next month.
|
| Ajax
miss Litmanen against Inter |
23 Sep 2002
|
|
Ajax will most likely
miss Jari Litmanen for Wenesday's Champions League match against Inter Milan.
The Finnish international was one of the highlight's of last week's C-L
match against Lyon but has picked up an injury and had to drop out of
Saturday's Ere Divisie match against RBC Roosendaal. "He's still
suffering from an old hamstring problem that's playing up again and is
doubtful to start on Wednesday," said trainer Ronald Koeman, while
American left-back John O'Brien is also unlikely to play after picking up an
achilles problem.
|
| Ajax in injury worries |
22 Sep 2002
|
|
Ajax are faced with injury
worries as they prepare for their next Champions League matches with Jari
Litmanen and Ramon van Haaren both doubtful to play. The Fin has picked up a
thigh muscle strain while the Feyenoord defender has a hamstring problem.
Litmanen appeared as a substitute in yesterday's match between Ajax and RBC
but only lasted 9 minutes before leaving the pitch to be replaced by Jan van
Halst. He blew life into the match, serving up an assist that Zlatan
Ibrahimovic promptly netted but looks unlikely to be fit in time for
Tuesday's clash with Inter Milan in the Giuseppe Meazza stadium.
|
| RBC
lose to Ajax 2-3 |
21 Sep 2002
|
|
RBC
lineup: Aerts - Keller, Nascimento, Oliseh - Fleur, De Graaf, Heije, Tininho
- Wooter, Vos, Sillah.
Ajax
lineup: Stekelenburg - Trabelsi, Yakubu, Chivu, O'Brien - Galásek, Pienaar,
Maxwell - Van der Meyde, Ibrahimovic, Wamberto.
Ajax and PSV are the only teams not to have
dropped a point so far this season though the Amsterdammers made
unnecessarily hard work of dealing with RBC Roosendaal tonight, where Henk
Voss celebrated his 400th professional match, and almost
gave away a 0-3 lead in the closing stages of the match. They kicked-off at
a cracking pace and Maxwell, Van der Meyde and Zlatan, especially, had
several good chances to go ahead in theng quarter of an hour but his efforts were
parried by Aerts and the post. It took till favourite-son Jari Litmanen
appeared for the back of the net to be finally found. Appearing as as substitute for young Brazilian
Maxwell, he was once more quick to make
his presence felt, feeding Zlatan Ibrahimovic with a ball that the Swedish
international sent past goalie Maikel Aerts for the 1-0 in the 58th. A bit of a downer
is the news of his injury, which the Fin picked up
9 minutes after appearing. Litmanen doesn't want to risk a more
serious thigh muscle injury with the Champions League match against Inter
Milan at the door and decided to drop out to prevent any further strain. Tomás Galásek
increased the lead with a 2nd in the 67th with
a beauty of a strike. When Cristian Chivu put away a spot-shot in 75th, for
a hands-ball by former Ajax player Melvin Fleur, the match seemed wrapped
up. However, RBC fought back with
goals by former Ajax striker Nordin Wooter in the 82nd and Geert den Ouden
in the 88th that were not quite enough to earn the Roosendaalers a point
but did make the last minutes tense and exciting to watch.
|
| Van
der Lem closing deal for Saudi move |
21 Sep 2002
|
|
Our grateful thanks to Mohamed S. Chbaro at
http://www.middleeastfootball.com
for the story!!
Jong Ajax's trainer
Gerard van der Lem has revealed to the Saudi press that he's close to
finalising the deal which will see him move to Saudi Arabia
as
the national team's new technical director. "I am finalizing the terms of the move with Ajax Amsterdam before signing officially as coach of the Saudi Arabian national team."
Talking on the phone to popular Saudi daily Al-Riyadh on Saturday, the Dutchman
had this to say: "Three assistants will be assisting me in my new mission, two of them are Dutchmen and the third from South Africa.
The team I am taking with me have a wealth of coaching experience here in Holland. This was a main
point in my discussions with the Saudi officials who gave me a free-hand to
obtain the best entourage for the work-at-hand here in Riyadh.
"I'm currently rounding off my talks with Ajax in order to end my contract with
the club on friendly terms. I am head coach of their Under-23 squad and I
want to honour the contract with Ajax in a professional manner." Ajax's administration has been very cooperative in this regard, and the
next step will be the official signing of the contract with the Saudi FA in
the next few days in Paris, so that it can be officially announced to the international media," he concluded.
|
| Ajax
beat Lyon 2 - 1 in Champions League |
17 Sep 2002
|
|
Ajax:
Stekelenburg - Trabelsi, Yakubu, Chivu, O'Brien - Galásek, Litmanen,
Maxwell - Van der Meyde, Ibrahimovic, Sikora.
Olympique
Lyon: Coupet - Chanelet, Edmílson, Caçapa, Bréchet - Juninho
Pernambucano, Violeau, Carrière, Dhorasoo - Govou, Ânderson
Ajax got off to cracking start and almost went
ahead early on. Jari Litmanen proved to be a source of inspiration for the fans, who chanted his name every time he stylishly made contact with the
ball, as well as his teammates. The Amsterdammers put together some nice moves in a fast and
entertainingng quarter-of-an-hour of good-to-look-at football. Zlatan rounded off a great piece of solo-work with
a blistering shot that curved in for a terrific goal in the 11th. Stekelenburg made a
really fine save to keep the score in the Amsterdammers' favour. The game
see-sawed with chances on both sides. Then, in the 34th minute, Litmanen set in motion
another fine move, feeding through a beauty of a pass to Sikora who used it
to set up Zlatan who knew this was going to be his match - the
young Swede sent it sailing past the goalie and into the
back of the net. 2-0 up after half an hour's top-flight entertaining
football against the French Champions, who would have thought it possible?
It was as if the Amsterdammers had suddenly found their way to another level
of skill and communication and they were looking very good indeed heading
into the dressing room at halftime. The French came out for the 2nd
half in a higher gear and
pushed Ajax back which almost resulted in a goal after 10 minutes but
another excellent Van Stekelenburg save denied them. Jan van Halst was
brought on for Galasek to firm things up as the Lyon tempo dropped. With 20
minutes to go Pienaar came on to replace Sikora who'd picked up some kind
muscle strain. Former Vitesse striker Mamadou Diarra appeared for Lyon
and his presence reinspired them to push forward once more with a shot of
his own that was saved by the mature-beyond his years Maarten Stekelenburg
and John O'Brien cleared an Edmílson header
off the line. André Bergdølmo replaced
Ibrahimovich for the last 8 minutes and it immediately proved a dubious
choice as the defender failed to cope with Sonny Anderson who deftly flipped
ball over his shoulder, then lobbing it over Stekelenburg's head ... 2-1
in the 83rd. To make things worse Yakubu picked up his 2nd yellow card and
was sent off in the 85th. Ajax fought back for the 4 minutes of
extra-time and managed to hold on to their lead for a very encouraging
performance.
|
| Ajax
on the defensive against Lyon |
17 Sep 2002
|
|
Ajax-trainer Ronald Koeman has chosen to adopt a
defensive tactic for tonight's Champions League match against French champions
Olympique Lyonnais. "We'll be taking less risks tonight because we face a
dangerous opponent and will be fielding a more defensive formation than against
Zwolle last Saturday. Koeman remians tightlipped concerning the exact lineup but
it's possible that one of the team's wingers, Andy van der Meyde and Victor
Sikora (neither of whom played well
against Zwolle), will be left out.
|
| Van
der Lem facing up to new challenge |
17 Sep 2002
|
Ajax's Gerard van der Lem
has been hailing his new mission as Saudi Arabia's technical director as a real challenge.
In his first (telephone) interview with Saudi media the newly-appointed Dutch manager Gerard van der Lem
seemed fully aware he is facing a completely new challenge after signing a four-year contract to guide the Saudi
Arabian national team.
"This is the first time in my coaching career that I take charge of a national team, in this
respect the Gulf region-job is heralding in a new phase," the Dutch manager told daily paper Al-Riyadh on Tuesday.
"From a personal point of view it is a whole new experience, and my target is to
steer Saudi Arabia to the World Cup finals in Germany in four-years time. "This is exactly what I have underlined for the Saudi officials. I deeply
believe that the four-year contract will provide me with a suitable length of time
to reach this specific goal, while also re-establishing the status of Saudi Arabia as a leading football nation," he added.
"Now that I have been given the chance to guide the national team, I will put all my experience at the disposal of Saudi footballers. We have many
challenges lying ahead of us prior to the World Cup campaign, which will in
itself provide a unique opportunity to better assess the capabilities of all the players at my disposal," he concluded.
Van der Lem made it clear he will arrive in the Saudi capital some time during the first
two weeks of October and that a press conference will be held at the end of comprehensive talks with the local FA officials.
"Till that time, I won't be ready to elaborate on anything connected with the contract and
any plans lying ahead for either party," underlined the Dutch supremo.
Once more our grateful thanks to Mohamed S. Chbaro
at http://www.middleeastfootball.com
for the story!!!!
|
| Ahmed
Mido Hossam apologises to Ajax |
15 Sep 2002
|
|
Ahmed Mido Hossam has apologised to Ajax for the
remarks he made to local TV station AT5 on Friday in which he said he was
definitely going to leave the club when the next transfer-window came
round! Although he's made his excuses to his fellow teammates as well as to
the technical staff at the ArenA the temperamental Egyptian striker will
still be subject to internal discipline in the form of a fine. The
disappointed goal-getter was dropped after 30 minutes play in the match at,
and against, Groningen last weekend and was accused of a lack of motivation
by coach Ronald Koeman. Mido has now woken up to his situation,
admitting that his comments were both irresponsible and thoughtless. The
19 year-old still faces the prospect of an investigation by the Egyptian FA
for his making himself unavilable for the African Nations Cup match against
Madagascar which his country's team embarassingly lost! He'll also be
missing from Ajax's squad to face Olympique Lyon in the Champions League but
is expected to rejoin the squad on Wednesday.
|
| Ajax
struggle to beat
Zwolle 2-0 |
14 Sep 2002
|
|
Ajax
lineup: Stekelenburg - Trabelsi, Yakubu, Chivu, O'Brien - Galásek,
Litmanen, Maxwell - Van der Meyde, Ibrahimovic, Sikora.
Zwolle
lineup: Van der Werff - Doesburg, Schol, Kras, Van der Haar - De
Ridder, Cvetkov, Van Steeg - Promes, R. Roelofsen, Lim-Duan.
Ajax proved too much for freshly promoted Zwolle
and are now unbeaten in 9 consecutive Ere Divisie matches although their
performance was not an impressive one. Tonight was memorable for the return
of jari Litmanen who displayed his talents as if he'd never been away. The
crowd was chanting his name long before, and long after the match, and he
returned from the dressing-room for his Player-of-the-Match award. Justly
so, as he was clearly the superior player on-pitch and everyone, including
Zwolle coach Peter Boeve, enjoyed the skills on show. Zwolle had
unexpectedly beaten Vitesse but goals by Richard Witschge and Cristian
Chivu (penalty) eventually gave the Amsterdammers the points. Jari Litmanen was
invaluable in spying any possible hole in the opponents defence and fed
Zlatan Ibrahimovich ball after ball but the young striker was either unable
to get them on target or found keeper Van der Werff blocking his way to
goal. The Fin also saw a header of his own making stopped by the Zwolle
goalie. It took until the 58th
minute for Witschge, who came on for Maxwell, to find the back of the net and
Chivu's 72nd minute
spot-shot to seal the result which gives Ajax 2nd place in the table behind
PSV who won 4-0 against RKC.
|
| Egyptian
FA investigate Mido injury story |
14 Sep 2002
|
A story emanating from Cairo, Egypt suggests that
Ajax's Egyptian international Ahmed 'Mido' Hossam is to be summoned by the local
FA for an inquiry into his absence from the recent African Nations Group 10 qualifying
match his country played against Madagascar. Egypt suffered a surprising 1-0
away defeat 1-0 and, according to almost all local observers, the absence of Ajax's
marksman was the cause of the embarassing result.
The story has it that 'Mido' notified manager Mohsen Saleh about an alleged injury he sustained in a Dutch league game, three days ahead of the Madagascar outing, prompting the Pharaohs' coach to name Ahmed Salah Hosni
a s his replacement but the newcomer proved a flop in the game, wasting two brilliant chances in the second-half as Egypt
went down 1-0.
Local journalists informed the Egyptian FA early this week that the striker wasn't
actually injured at all but, according to the Ajax website, had been subbed by coach Ronald Koeman after
putting on a poor performance in the match against Groningen. The news has prompted the Egyptian FA to launch an investigation
into the striker's 'story'.
Reports in the Egyptian capital have it that the player, who was married to an Egyptian
model last July, even travelled to Cairo recently to attend a special football- school held at
the Heliopolis Club, without alerting FA officials of his presence. Unannounced
trips like this have also got him into trouble with the Amsterdammers in the
past! "He will definitely be subject to an official inquiry," an Egyptian FA spokesman told
local daily paper Al-Gomhouria, "And we are expecting him to come to Cairo
with in the next few days to discuss the situation."
Our thanks to Mohamed S. Chbaro at http://www.middleeastfootball.com
for the story!!
|
| Jari
Litmanen in action tomorrow |
13 Sep 2002
|
|
Ajax's Jari Litmanen will make his debut for the
club in tomorrow's match against Zwolle. Ronald Koeman saïd, "Jari
knows the club well and we know each other from our time together at
Barcelona, so it was real easy to work him into the team. Jari is a clever
player who picks things up real quick and we've had no problems at
all." Abukabari Yakubu will replace Andre Berdølmo, who's been going
through a rough stretch of games, in defence alongside Cristian Chivu while
Mido will be replaced by Zlatan Ibrahimovich up front - see our other
story!
|
| Mido
wants to leave Ajax |
13 Sep 2002
|
|
Mido has announced that he is determined to leave
Ajax when the following transfer window comes round during the coming
winter-break. The temperamental Egyptian striker is annoyed at being dropped
by Ronald Koeman after being substituted during the match against Groningen
and has no intention of taking a seat on the bench while rival Zlatan
Ibrahimovich gets the deluxe striker's role in tomorrow's match against
Zwolle. Coach Ronald Koeman had this to say, "Zlatan deserves a chance
and with Litmanen in the team to stimulate and 'feed' him I hope that
everyone will get to see the Ibrahimovich we've been treated to in training!
Mido has not been playing well and his performance during this week's
training session has only confirmed my opinion." As soon as he heard
the news Mido made clear his desire to leave the ArenA a.s.a.p. The 19
year-old joined Ajax from Belgian side AA Gent in the summer of 2001 and has
so far scored 13 goals in 27 matches.
|
| Litmanen
arrives at Ajax |
10 Sep 2002
|
|
Ajax's latest signing, Finnish international Jari
Litmanen, reported for duty yesterday, receiving a hero's welcome by the
fans, and immediately had his first training session
with the squad. The former Liverpool and Barcelona player has been allotted
the no.20 shirt with the club where he spent 7 years in the 1990s and the
many banners hung up by fans to welcome him back have undoubtedly reassured
him that he made the right decision to 'come home'. "It's great to be
back and it's just like when I came here for the first time 10 years ago - I
feel really at home again." The news that Rafael van der Vaart is out
of action for the coming 6-8 weeks doesn't mean that Litmanen is seen as his
replacement and coach Ronald Koeman has made clear that the two players
could well be fielded together, with Litmanen getting a place behind the
strikers as extra-striker or in midfield. The 31 year-old is also happy to
see a young group of players at the Arena who are talented, hungry and with
the will to go far. He hopes that his years of experience will rub-off on
them.
|
| John
van 't Schip new Jong Ajax trainer |
10 Sep 2002
|
| Van
der Vaart out for 6 weeks?! |
08 Sep 2002
|
|
Ajax's Rafael van der
Vaart will look back with mixed feelings on his part in Oranje's 3-0 win
against Belarus last night. The young midfielder came on as a substitute in
the 70th minute and played a part in Holland's 3rd goal of the match (scored
by Chelsea's Jerrell Hasselbaink) but was back on the bench within 10
minutes after picking up a knee injury. The daring and skilfull midfielder
was felled at the end of a solo-run and looks to have severely damaged his
knee. Oranje coach Dick Advocaat said afterwards, "It doesn't look
good." The 19 year-old is also pessimistic and thinks he could well be
out of action for 6 weeks! Tomorrow he'll be reporting to Ajax's medical
staff for a complete checkup to see exactly how bad the damage is. It's bad
news for Van der Vaart, for Ajax and for Oranje! The young talent was making an excellent start to the season
after missing
much of the second half of last term due to a knee injury which necessitated an operation in
February.
|
| Ajax
finds solution to Litmanen's contract |
05 Sep 2002
|
|
Ajax and the Dutch FA have found a solution for
the problem with Jari Litmanen's contract with the Amsterdammers. The
original deal for 4 months has been 'converted' into a new one which runs
for 1 year and 10 months with the proviso that there will be assessments
made during the winter-break and again at the end of the current season.
Litmanen is currently training with the Finnish national team in preparation
for the coming EURO 2004 qualifier against Wales this weekend.
|
| Van
der Lem to be Saudi technical director |
05 Sep 2002
|
|
Gerard van der Lem is leaving Ajax as of
July 1st 2003 to become the new technical director with Saudi Arabia's
football association where he's signed a deal till 2006. The Saudi FA have asked
Ajax to consider releasing the 49 year-old coach, who is currently Ajax's
reserve team trainer, as of October 1st this year and the Amsterdammers are
considering the request. Van der Lem, who was Louis van Gaal's
assistant during Ajax's run of successes in the 1990s, succeeded Jan Olde
Riekerink as reserve trainer in May this year.
|
| Litmanen
transfer runs into trouble |
05 Sep 2002
|
|
Jari Litmanen's move to Ajax is apparently
against the current rules governing transfers. The Finnish international has
signed a contract for 4 months with the Amsterdammers with the proviso that
their would be discussions during the winter break in Holland for an extension of the deal for a possible
further 18 months. It now turns out that
any contract should have been for a minimum of one-year but fortunately for
Jari, and Ajax, he cannot be denied the right to play as both the Dutch FA
(KNVB) and UEFA have already given their blessing to the deal which has been
signed! Litmanen will have his first training session on Monday
at the ArenA and is still trying to get used to the idea that he's 'back
home'! He'll make his first appearance for Ajax after Finland's match
against Wales this weekend.
|
| Mido
out of Egypt's African Cup match |
03 Sep 2002
|
|
Ajax striker Ahmed 'Mido' Hossam has pulled out of
Egypt's African Cup qualifier match against Madagascar due to sickness. Mido was
substituted after only 32 minutes in Sunday's Ere Divisie match against
Groningen as a result of his lack of effort, said coach Ronald Koeman after the
match. The trainer's negative comments concerning the Egyptian striker, and
other players in the Ajax squad who seem to be lacking in motivation, were
repeated in the Dutch media on Monday. Koeman is particularly worried that the
team's successes last season, and their qualification for the Champions League,
seems to have gone to some players' heads. It's resulted in a lack of effort in
Ere Divisie matches so far which could have a disastrous effect on the team's
performance in Europe! The Amsterdammers start their Champions League campaign
in two weeks time!
|
| Christian
Chivu Footballer of the Year |
03 Sep 2002
|
|
Christian Chivu was crowned "Footballer of
the Year" at last night's award gala in Hilversum, organised by Dutch
daily newspaper 'De Telegraaf' and football magazine 'Voetbal International'.
The Ajax defender received his Gouden Schoen (Golden Boot) trophy from his
footballing hero Gheorghe Hagi and dedicated his award to his father. Alfred
Schreuder (NAC) received the Zilveren Schoen (Silver Boot) award, for his
2nd place in the same category, from former youth coach Huub Stevens, while
the players who were voted joint 3rd, former Heerenveen striker 'Mighty
Swede' Marcus Allbäck (now with
Aston Villa) and Utrecht's Dirk Kuijt, received their awards
respectively from Foppe de Haan (Allbäck's former coach at Heerenveen) and
teammate Alfons Groenendijk. Ajax's Rafael van der Vaart was the uncontested
"Talent of the Year" and received his award from his former youth
coach Johnny van 't Schip. Finally Ronald Spelbos handed out the "Top
Scorer" trophy to his former pupil (from their time together at NAC)
Pierre van Hooijdonk who scored 24 goals last season.
|
| Chelsea
sign Ajax youth player |
03 Sep 2002
|
|
Chelsea have signed one of Ajax's youth players
just in time before the closing date for the transfer-market this summer. 18
year-old Moubarak Boussoufa has made the move to Stamford Bridge without the
Premiership club having to pay a fee, the only money paid being in the form
of compensation for the training the youngster's received in
Amsterdam.
|
| Ajax
- Zwolle a day earlier |
02 Sep 2002
|
|
The Ere Divisie match between Ajax and Zwolle
originally planned for Sunday September 15th has been move forward a day, at
the Amsterdammers' request, to Saturday September 14th, kickof 19:30. The
reason for the change is that Ajax play their first Champions League match
on the following Tuesday, September 17th, against French champions
Olympique Lyon.
|
| Ajax's
Pasanen picks up knee injury |
02 Sep 2002
|
|
Ajax's Petri Pasanen is going into hospital today
to have his left-knee examined after the Finnish defender picked up an
injury during the last pre-match training on Saturday prior to the 1-3 win
against Groningen. Pasanen, who's been called-up by Finland's coach Antti
Muurinen for the EURO 2004 qualifier against Wales this Saturday, will have
to miss the match. Ajax's latest signing, and crowd-favourite, Jari Litmanen
has also been called-up for the match.
|
| Van
der Vaart welcomes arrival Litmanen |
01 Sep 2002
|
| Groningen
lose to Ajax 1-3 |
01 Sep 2002
|
|
Groningen
lineup: Beukenkamp - Elshot, Boekweg, Allach, Florén - Hoogstrate,
Matthijs, Krstev, Broerse - Ikedia, Tuhuteru.
Ajax
lineup: Stekelenburg - Trabelsi, Bergdølmo, Chivu, O'Brien - Galásek, Van
der Vaart, Maxwell - Van der Meyde, Mido, Sikora.
Ajax had an easy win this afternoon thanks to
Groningen's overly-respectful and passive approach which gave Victor Sikora and Rafael van der
Vaart all the room they needed to harrass the home team's defence. The
Amsterdammers didn't even play particularly well and their fans, who
were banned from showing their faces in Groningen by the local mayor,
missed absolutely nothing in terms of footballing entertainment. Ajax went
ahead early on when Sikora set
up Van der Vaart with an easy chance to beat Roy Beukenkamp in the 13th
minute, the outstanding young talent slamming the ball high into the
back-of-the-net for the 1-0 and his first goal of the season. The Ajax duo were
also in on the second of
the Amsterdammers' first-half goals - Zlatan Ibrahimovich (who
replaced the injured Mido in the 36th) picked up the ball in midfield and
fed it through to Sikora. The winger then passed it on to Van der Vaart who
tapped in the low pass
from close range to give Ajax a comfortable 2-0 lead to take into the dressing room at halftime.
Six minutes into the 2nd half Sikora served up Andy van der Meyde with a
fine cross which was neatly headed in for the 0-3. Hugo and Martin
Drent were brought on for Hoogstrate and Ignacio Tuhuteru but it didn't help
the Oosterpark side very much, although they did put together some attacking moves which gave
them several opportunities to score. Hugo finally put one away for the home
team in the 75th when he hit in the rebound off Pius Ikedia's shot, which
had been parried by Maarten Stekelenburg. With the final whistle in sight(?) they then allowed Ajax to take over once
more but the Amsterdammers neglected to add to their tally. Nonetheless, Ronald Koeman will be more than happy with the three away points and
a top-of-the-table position.
|
| AZ
sign Ajax's Tim de Cler |
31 Aug 2002
|
|
AZ have signed Ajax's
defender Tim de Cler on a contract for 3 years. The 23 year-old left-back has
already passed his medical with the Alkmaarders after getting permission to
talks with them yesterday. It didn't take long for the deal to be closed and De
Cler, who's turned out a total of 76 times for Ajax, will be happy to have found
a new club after an unsuccessful trial
earlier in August with English side West Bromwich Albion. He was told by
Ronald Koeman that there was no room for him in the squad at the ArenA this
season.
|
| Willem
II hire Van der Gun |
30 Aug 2002
|
| Jari
Litmanen back at Ajax! |
30 Aug 2002
|
|
Jari Litmanen is returning to Ajax
after
3 unhappy years without a regular teamplace at either Barcelona or
Liverpool! He's been clearly unhappy at Liverpool since his move there from
Barça, making few appearances (to the disappointment of many Liverpool
fans) and was unlikely to see much action in the future. Manager Gerard
Houllier gave him permission to start looking for a new club but a brief
flirtation with the Amsterdammers some weeks ago ended when Ajax said they
couldn't afford his wage demands and a possible move to Turkish side
Galatasaray was turned down by Litmanen. The 31 year-old will sign an
initial deal for 4 months with the possibility of staying on for a further
year-and-a-half if both parties are happy with the situation in January
2003. There are still a few formalities to be ironed today before the deal
is official and technical director Leo Beenhakker will be meeting with
Liverpool representatives to sort them out. Ajax's goal is to have Litmanen
registered with UEFA before 16:00n hours today in order to make him eligible
for Champiosn League football. Otherwise, according to Beenhakker, the aim
of the transfer will have missed its mark!
|
| Ajax
sign Absalonsen |
28 Aug 2002
|
|
Ajax have signed the 16 year-old Danish talent Johan
Absalonsen who had a recent, and obviously
successful, trial at the ArenA. The left-wingers, who comes from Odense side
B1913, follows in the footsteps of Søren Lerby, Frank Arnesen, Jesper Olsen and
Jesper Grønkjær, who all made the move to Amsterdam as teenagersd. In fact
he's so young his mother had to sign the contract for him!
|
| Vitesse
lose to Ajax 1 - 2 |
25 Aug 2002
|
|
Ajax have broken their run of defeats at the
Gelredome with a 1-2 win this afternoon. Cristian Chivu's 2nd half goal gave
the Amsterdammers the points after Matthew Amoah had put Vitesse ahead in
the 16th minute and Petri Pasanen had equalized in the 51st. Ajax fielded an
eleven without wingers
Sikora and Van der Meyde as Ronald Koeman experimented with a 4-3-3-
formation. Ajax played with Ahmed Hossam and Zlatan Ibrahimovic up front but
Vitesse looked the more threatening team in theng half. Emile Mbamba
created theng for theng goal giving Amoah the chance to put it
away in the 16th minute. Nick Hofs and Mbamba failed to convert otherngs while Rafael van der Vaart and Mido also failed to find the
back-of-the-net. Theo Janssen hit the bar with a freekick after the break
but, later on, Dragoslav Jevric's failure to clear Zlatan Ibrahimovic's shot
gave Petri Pasanen the chance to slot home in the 51st. Christian Chivu
slammed home a surprise winning goal from a freekick which remained
unanswered by the home team's Kalle Sone, Mbamba and Janssen who all missed
opportunities to level the score and retain their unbeaten home record
against the Amsterdammers.
|
|
Koeman leaves Sikora at home
|
25 Aug 2002
|
|
Ronald Koeman has left Victor Sikora at home and
the winger will not be playing against his former club Vitesse this
afternoon. Trainer Koeman said, "He's picked up an injury and has also
been sick since Thursday, missing the training session held that day. It was
then obvious that he would not be able to play this weekend." It's also
possible that Sikora's illness is not the only reason for his absence as it
appears he may have received personal threats (possibly related to the fact
that it will be his first appearance against his old club?!). Koeman will
also leave out his other winger Andy van der Meyde from the starting lienup
and he'll be watching from a place on the bench. It's expected that Ajax
will field a 4-4-2 formation with Zlatan and Mido up front.
|
|
Ajax friendly against Zamalek in January?
|
25 Aug 2002
|
CAIRO, August 24: Eager to claim a resounding
public relations success following the one achieved by arch rivals Al-Ahly
two days back, Cairo giants Zamalek are reportedly engaged in talks with
Ajax Amsterdam to entertain them in the Egyptian capital next January.
“We have already received encouraging signals from the Dutch club,” said
Zamalek club president Dr. Kamal Darwish. “We are about to tackle the
specific date now, preferably between January 28th and 31st.”
Al-Ahly have been phenomenal successful in staging friendly matches against top-ranked
European opposition over the last couple of years, beating Real Madrid 1-0
last summer before flooring Italian giants AS Rome 2-1 early this
month.
The matches attracted 100,000 spectators each, and the money generated enabled the Reds to tackle the new season on solid financial
ground.
An Ajax friendly here in Cairo will provide the local faithfuls with a unique
opportunity to see their national team's centre-forward, Ahmed “Mido”
Hossam, in action for the mighty Dutch side, two years after leaving Egypt to
play his club football in Belgium before moving to Holland where he has established himself as one of the
Ere Divisie's most feared strikers.
Story: -Mohamed
S. Chbaro
www.middleeastfootball.com
|
| Weekend's
Topper - Vitesse v. Ajax |
23 Aug 2002
|
All eyes (or at least a great many) will be
focussed on Sunday's clash between Vitesse and Ajax. The Arnhemmers won the
last 5 matches against the Amsterdammers in the Gelredome and are unbeaten
at home in their last 21 league matches. The last time Vitesse lost at home
was to Willem II in a 1-2 defeat on April 7th 2001. Since then they've won
13 matches and drawn 8 at home while, in total, they've beaten Ajax 6 times,
drawn 6 and lost 5. The goal balance so far is Vitesse 27 and Ajax 26
scored. Last season they won 3-1 when André Bergdølmo put Ajax ahead via a
penalty before goals by Jhonny van Beukering, Ruud Knol and an own goal by
Bergdølmo gave them the points. Also of note, Ajax's Wamberto got a red
card in the dying minutes of the match. The match marked Ronald Koeman's
return to the Gelredome after swapping Arnhem for Amsterdam in December
2001. Victor Sikora followed his example this summer while fellow teammates
Nikos Machlas and Ferdi Vierklau have also previously played for Vitesse.
Some other statistical odds and sods:
If Machlas gets a chance to substitute and scores twice he'll reach the
magic 100 Ere Divisie goal barrier. His first was for Vitesse on November
17th 1996 away against NEC, after which he put away 59 more while for Ajax
he's so far netted 38.
Bergdølmo could play his 250th league match on Sunday after 115 for
Lillestrøm SK, 83 for Rosenborg BK and 51 for Ajax.
Belgian striker Bob Peeters could score his 50th Ere Divisie goal, having
put away 39 for his previous club Roda JC and 10 for Vitesse since his
transfer in the summer of 2000.
Last but not least, Rafael van der Vaart will play his 50th match for Ajax.
|
| Zlatan
scores, De Vlieger blunders |
22 Aug 2002
|
Ajax's
young Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovich scored Sweden's only goal in
their 1-1 friendly draw with Russia last night. It took till the last
minute of the match before he found the back of the net but it was enough
to prevent defeat.
The evening was a less than happy one for Willem II's
Belgian keeper Geert De Vlieger whose blunder allowed Poland to snatch a
1-1. |
| Van
Basten returns to Ajax |
21 Aug 2002
|
|
Marco van Basten has returned to the training
fields of Ajax after an absence of 15 years. The former international is
training the club's A1 youth team as part of his KNVB coaching course and
yesterday was his first session alongside another ex-international Danny
Blind who is the squad's regular trainer. Although his contribution was a
minor one his arrival was welcomed by the young talents and will hopefully
grow during the coming months.
|
| Ajax
and Feyenoord in CNN Top 10 |
21 Aug 2002
|
|
Things can't be that bad with Dutch footbal after
all! In the new CNN ranking Ajax have lept in out of blue to occupy 5th
place in the American news broadcaster's Top Ten! Feyenoord are also in with
a shared 9th place alongside Russian side Lokomotiv Moskow. No.1 are
Arsenal, No.2 are Bayern München and No.3 Real Madrid. Liverpool is just
ahead of Ajax in 4th place while Valencia, Juventus and Inter Milan are
respectively 6th, 7th and 8th.
|
| Sunderland
bid for Zlatan Ibrahimovich |
20 Aug 2002
|
|
English Premiership side Sunderland have made an
official offer for Ajax's young Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovich and would
like to conclude the deal before the transfer deadline runs out on August 31st.
Zlatan is quoted as saying that, for the moment at least, he's inclined to
remain where he is at the ArenA but you never know!? Several
times last season he was linked with a possible move to AS Roma but he and his
agent decided it would be better to stay in Holland. It's unclear exactly
how much has been bid by the 'Black Cats' and the Amsterdammers' technical
director Leo Beenhakker is only going as far as to say that the amount on offer
is well below the rumoured €11 million + being talked about in the press. As
far as Beenhakker and Ajax are concerned there will be no further negotiations
with Sunderland and that Zlatan will be staying with the club at least till the
end of the season. "The new season's just begun and we don't have time to
start looking round ourselves for potential replacements". Regarding his
own situation at the club Ibrahimovich told Swedish newspaper 'Expressen' that
Ronald Koeman has said it's 50/50, between him and Ahmed 'Mido' Hossam , who
gets to play in the center forward position.
|
| Van
der Vaart pulls out of Oranje-Norway |
19 Aug 2002
|
|
Rafael van der Vaart has had to pull out
of the Oranje friendly against Norway this coming Wednesday due to a slight
groin injury which he does not want to risk aggravating any further. The
Ajax midfielder has contacted Holland's coach Dick Advocaat with the bad
news but Advocaat will not be calling up a replacement for the match in
Norway. It will be a bit of disappointment for the talented youngster who's
been unable to play for his country since a knee injury put him out of
action last February. He is, of course, hoping to be available for the far
more importantng Euro 2002 qualifier on September 7th against
Belarus.
|
| Ajax
beat Utrecht 3-1 |
18 Aug 2002
|
Ajax
lineup: Stekelenburg, Trabelsi, Bergdølmo, Chivu, O'Brien, Galásek, Van
der Vaart, Maxwell, Van der Meyde, Mido and Sikora.
Utrecht lineup: Wapenaar,
Vreven, Zwaanswijk, Touzani, Van Mol, Tanghe, De Jong, Bosschaart, Van den
Bergh, Kuijt and Gluscevic.
Utrecht were looking to revenge themselves
on this blisteringly hot Sunday afternoon for their Amstel
Cup final defeat by the Amsterdammers last season where (according to
many) the cup was stolen from them by a dubious referee decision.
Ajax kicked-off confidently, pushing their opponents back with Karim
Touzani and Patrick Zwaanswijk havng the greatest difficulty in coping
with Mido and the continually forward moving Rafael van der Vaart. Mido
beat Zwaanswijk and simply served up Tomás Galásek with an easyner
in the 5th minute. After theng 15 minutes the home team took their
foot of the pedal and Utrecht were able to rally themselves, even looking
the better team for much of the match. Tom van Mol equalized in the 31st,
his shot deflected in off Chivu, and both he and teammate Igor Gluscevic
had other chances to put the Domstad side ahead. Mido returned the
advantage to Ajax again in the 79th minute, heading in from a Sikora
cross, which broke the Utrecht resistance, and substitute Steven Pienaar
was able to take the score to 3-1 in the 85th.
|
| Van
der Vaart selected for Holland-Norway |
15 Aug 2002
|
|
Rafael van der Vaart has been selected for
Oranje's coming friendly against Norway on August 21st. Although coach Dick
Advocaat has not officially announced the names of the squad to travel to
Norway for the match, Ajax's website carries the news that the talented
midfielder has been selected. His teammate Andy van der
Meyde will also be joining him in the Oranje squad. Van der Vaart made his
Oranje debut on October 6th last year in the World Cup qualifier against
Andorra but his knee injury kept him out of action since. While Van der Meyde made his first appearance on May 19th of this
year in the friendly against the United States in Washington.
|
| Ajax
and Machlas say "no" to Galatasaray |
14 Aug 2002
|
|
Turkish side Galatasaray have made an official
approach to Ajax to hire Nikos Machlas but both the player and the club have
said "no" to the request as it concerns a temporary contract.
Machlas' absence from training on Sunday, after being dropped from the squad
for the SuperCup match against PSV, led trainer Ronald Koeman to say that,
as far as he was concerned, the Greek striker could leave for a new
employer. Both parties sat down to clear the air on Monday and are now
willing to continue working together.
|
| Koeman
and Machlas clear the air |
12 Aug 2002
|
|
Ronald Koeman and Nikos Machlas have cleared the
air and settled their differences resulting from the Greek striker's absence
from the squad which was selected to face PSV for Sunday's Super Cup. Machlas
reacted angrily to being left out, refusing to join the group for lunch and
failing to turn up for training with the reserve squad on Sunday afternoon.
After a chat with the coach and technical director Leo Beenhakker all is
hunky-dory once more at the ArenA and the former Ere Divisie top-scorer has
resumed training with the 1st team squad. He'll have to pay a hefty fine for
his 'misconduct' though, but that shouldn't break the bank on the kind of
salary he must be earning, and he'll still have to accept the current
striker-ranking which is no. 1: Ahmed 'Mido' Hossam, no. 2 Zlatan
Ibrahimovic and then in 3rd place Machlas. If an interested club comes to
call with an interesting offer he'll also be able to leave if he so wishes.
|
| Machlas
on his way out at Ajax? |
12 Aug 2002
|
|
Nikos Machlas has told Ronald Koeman that he
wants to leave Ajax after being dropped from the 18-man squad for
yesterday's SuperCup clash with PSV. The Greek striker, and former
winner of the 'Golden Boot' award for top European striker, has been slowly
pushed out of the lineup in Amsterdam, mostly making appearances as a
substitute. He failed to turn up for training yesterday and there will
undoubtedly be some heated exchanges later today when Koeman and Machlas sit
down to discuss his future.
|
| Ajax
win SuperCup after 3-1 against PSV |
11 Aug 2002
|
The SuperCup match kicked-off later than planned
due to a blockade of the PSV players' bus by unhappy supporters in
Eindhoven. PSV got off to a more assured start than Ajax and Mateja Kezman
had a couple of earlyngs before a Rommedahl cross found the Yugoslav
waiting to head in ther in the 10th minute. Van der Meyde hit the side
netting minutes later as Ajax fought back. Sikora missed THE chance of the
1st half when his attempt to put the ball between Watereus' legs was
smothered when the goalie simply sat on the ball. Van der Meyde got a yellow
card minutes later for a dangerous sliding action which
ended with Bouma receiving the winger's boot in
his rump, resulting in a heated confrontation. Kezman had a shot stopped by
the fine young goalie Maarten Stekelenburg before Rafael van der Vaart
proved once again how invaluable he is for Ajax, picking up a Maxwell
through ball on the edge of the box, turning neatly to slice it past
Waterreus for the equalizer in the 42nd. Stekelenburg showed again how good
he is by stopping a Van Bommel blast to keep the score level before the
half-time whistle. Trabelsi got a Kezman elbow in the face as the
injury-time seconds/minutes ticked on.
After the break Kezman missed a great
chance when a sloppy back pass by Pasanen left him with only Stekelenburg to
beat but his attempt was too nonchalant. In the 54th minute Galásek saw Trabelsi
break down the right, crossed to the Tunisian wing-back who crossed
perfectly for Mido to head in the 2-1! Kezman's 2nd 'foul' of the match
earned him a yellow card in the 58th. Ajax were looking stronger and
stronger as the minutes ticked by while PSV seemed to weaken mentally as
their control of midfield slipped out of their hands. Vennegoor of
Hesselink was brought on in the 65th to line-up alongside Kezman at the cost
of Vogel, while Bruggink dropped back behind the front-duo. Stekelenburg
stopped a Bruggink shot but had to give away a rebound that was (fortunately
for Ajax) cleared. Trabelsi then broke free down the middle but was held
back by Ooijer who got a yellow card only to miss a chance in front of the
Ajax goal minutes later. Victor Sikora was replaced by Wamberto in the 74th.
Van der Vaart did it again in the 77th when he was served up by Maxwell,
taking his time to carefully and casually slot it past a helpess Waterreus
for the 3-1. Mido was replaced by Zlatan. Galásek picked up a yellow card
for a foul on Van Bommel in the 79th and Bruggink was replaced by
Ramzi. As the clash drew to an end Ajax grew in strength while PSV
looked increasingly irritated by their inability to impose themselves on the
match. The Amsterdammers will be glad to add to their collection of
silverware, winning this Cup for the first time in their 'new' stadium and breaking the run of
ArenA defeats by PSV!
|
| Stekelenburg
in goal for SuperCup |
11 Aug 2002
|
|
Ronald Koeman has given young Maarten
Stekelenburg the chance to shine again in today's SuperCup clash with PSV.
The 19 year-old had some really fine performances in the Amsterdam
Tournament last weekend, and during the preceding friendlies, which have led
Koeman to the logical conclusion: that he's no.1 choice for goal-keeping
duties! It's always difficult for a young player to cope with pressure but
Stekelenburg has coped remarkably well after being thrown in at the deep end
and has kept his cool under all that he's so far had to deal with. In fact
it reminds me very much of another youngster, Feyenoord's young winger Robin
van Persie, who performed excellently for the Rotterdammers since joining
the 1st team last season.
|
| SuperCup
Preview - Ajax v. PSV |
10 Aug 2002
|
For the first time in
years the battle for the Dutch SuperCup
and it's prize, the Johan Cruijff Trophy, will be between two Ere Divisie
giants, namely Ajax and PSV. The Eindhoven side will face the Amsterdammers
without their fans due to their protest against Amsterdam's city council's
decision to only allow PSV supporters entry to the match if they travel by
special supporters train. It will be a fascinating confrontation between two
trainers who are in effect 'master' and 'pupil' as Ronald Koeman began his
coaching career under Guus Hiddink's guidance. Koeman was Hiddink's
assistant trainer, along with Frank Rijkaard, during the 1998 World Cup.
Hiddink had this to say about his opponent, "After coaching Koeman as a
player I was happy to see him, along with Rijkaard, Ruud Krol, Johan
Neeskens and Ruud Gullit, enroll for the Dutch FA's (KNVB) elite-course for
potential trainers. They all rolled up their sleeves during their period of
training and it feels good to see how Ronald has come on since then".
Koeman went on to become Louis van Gaal's assistant at Barcelona and also
learnt much from the Dutch Master himself, Johan Cruijff, when he played for
the Spanish side under Cruijff. "I've always kept my eyesduring
my playing career and I've definitely been formed by these three men. What I
especially noticed about Hiddink was the calm air of self-confidence he
radiated and communicated to his players plus the way he dealt with his
squad, qualities which I think are reflected in my own style."
Although PSV have only lost once to Ajax in the ARenA they will have to be
especially on their gurad this time round because they face a team who won
the 'double' last season and showed themselves to be worthy champions during
the latter part of the season. Their revival has continued as they've grown
in strength during their pre-season preparations, reinforced by the return
of Rafael van der Vaart and Petri Pasanen. Veterans Richard Witschge and
Aron Winter have also returned from loan spells with Alavés and Sparta,
respectively, adding some extra experience and backbone to the squad. Ronald
Koeman has also had his one 'wish' fulfilled with the arrival of winger
Victor Sikora from Vitesse. Nourdin Boukhari was also snapped up from
financially-troubled Sparta while Jelle van Damme, Nando Rafael and goalie
Maarten Stekelenburg (who is currently 1st choice due to the abence of the
injured Bogdan Lobont and Joey Didulica and really impressed during the
Amsterdam Tournament last weekend) have all been promoted from the club's
youth ranks. Last, but not least, Henk Timmer has been added as extra
goal-keeping cover for the season on a one-year loan deal from AZ.
|
| Jong
Ajax draw 2-2 with AZ in Amstel Cup |
10 Aug 2002
|
|
Jong Ajax look as if they're about to make as
much of an impression in the 2002/2003 Amstel Cup as they did in last
season's tournament after their 2-2 draw against Ere Divisie AZ. Last year's
semi-finalists (they were knocked out by Utrecht on penalties) stood firm
against the ambitious Alkmaarders, Stephano Seedorf scoring both their goals
while AZ's striker Robin Nelisse also found the back of the net twice. Steve
Pienaar in particular had a great match, causing all kinds of problems for
the AZ defence and it was only Oscar Moens good work in goal that prevented
Jong Ajax from going ahead early in the match. After 30 minutes they did
just that when Pienaar's pass found Seedorf waiting to convert it. The South
African international could have decided the match shortly after but it was
Nelisse instead who netted his first of the evening to draw AZ level before
putting his side ahead shortly after the break. Later in the 2nd half
another Pienaar pass gave Seedorf his 2nd goal of the match leaving AZ
trainer Henk van Stee full of admiration ("they could easily play in
the Ere Divisie") and the team's trainer Gerard van Lem happy with a
point, although a win would have been better!
|
| Wooter
back at Ajax |
09 Aug 2002
|
| Ajax
hire Timmer for one year |
08 Aug 2002
|
|
After days of speculation, rumour and confusion
Ajax have been able to persuade AZ's reserve keeper Henk Timmer to come to
the ArenA on a one-year loan deal. The 30 year-old keeper spent last season
on loan to Feyenoord and was disappointed when he wasn't able to make the
move permanent. The Rotterdammers and the Alkmaarders couldn't reach
agreement on a transfer-fee and so he returned to AZ where Oscar Moens had
been declared 1st choice. Another problem for Timmer in a move to Ajax was
the risk of becoming 3rd or 4th choice keeper when Lobont and Didulica come
back from injury. Another obstacle was that AZ wanted to sell him whereas
Ajax only wanted to hire him for 4 months but the two clubs apparently
reached agreement on the deal yesterday. Timmer himself has agreed today to
a one-year spell in Amsterdam where he's already passed his medical and
joined the squad for training.
|
| No
West Brom deal for Tim de Cler |
07 Aug 2002
|
|
Tim de Cler's trial with
English side West Bromwich Albion has not ended happily in the offer of
a contract for the 23 year-old Ajax defender. He failed to impress coach
Megson although De Cler himself said, after playing in the 0-0 friendly
against Stoke City, that he would have liked to play for the Midlands side.
|
| Ajax
trial for Johan Absalonsen |
07 Aug 2002
|
|
Ajax have offered the young Danish striker Johan Absalonsen a trial. The 17 year-old, who is regarded as a promising talent,
currently plays for Odense side B 1913 and also had a short trial with
Feyenoord last season.
|
| Ajax
to hire/sign Henk Timmer? |
07 Aug 2002
|
| No
RBC move for Van der Gun |
06 Aug 2002
|
|
Cedric van der Gun has decided not to move to newly
promoted RBC Roosendaal. The Ajax forward had asked RBC-manager Paul van der
Kraan for some more time to think about the offer he'd been made but didn't get
it! Talking to Dutch provincial newspaper the 'Brabants Dagblad' Van der Kraan
said, "He only wants to use that extra time to see if he can find another
club to sign for while what we need at the moment is clarity and a player(s) who
actually wants to play for us".
|
| Grim
turns down Ajax request to return |
06 Aug 2002
|
|
Fred
Grim has decided not to return as temporary keeper at Ajax after being asked by
the club to help out now that Bogdan Lobont and Joey Didulica are both
injured, leaving Maarten Stekelenburg as the only fit keeper with junior goalie
Robert Zwinkels acting as back-up. "The club asked me to train and get fit
enough to return for temporary duty but I've declined their request due to the
emotional aftermath of my departure from the team at the end of last season. I
don't want to have to go through that whole process again when the other guys
return!" Grim, who celebrates his 37th birthday on August 17th, became the
Amsterdammers' keepers-trainer since hanging up his boots.
|
| Ajax
win tournament 4-3 against Barcelona |
04 Aug 2002
|
|
Ajax looked as if they were going to be outclassed by Barcelona tonight
but stirred themselves to put on a terrific performance. Although they got off to a slow start
Barça's stylish football was rewarded by a Patrick Kluivert goal in the 10th minute,
though he did look rather offside. The former Ajax player was extremely
classy throughout theng half and formed a dangerous attacking duo with
Saviola who scored the 2nd in the 40th. Young Maarten Stekelenburg put in
another impressive, self-assured performance throughout the 90 minutes>
He made a fine, alert first-half
punched-save from
a freekick that deflected off the wall and followed it up with a moment of
bravery with the risk of injury to himself that had Ronald Koeman looking
worried. Ajax got one back in the first minute after the break when Mido
struck home a close range rebound from Van der Vaart's sharp-angled attempt
but Saviola restored the lead only a minute later. The Amsterdammers looked
broken but were
not giving up in front of their fans and Rafael van der Vaart showed
he was truly back with two goals in the 60th and 62nd minutes to draw Ajax level.
The fans went wild and the stadium erupted with the chants of Ajax! Ajax!!
Van Gaal was not looking happy! The home team upped the pressure and
threatened to put away several more goals in the closing stages of the
match. This was a team that was clearly maturing fast and if they could just
find the back of the net once more they would seize the trophy, otherwise it would
be Barça's. Machlas came on to save Van der Vaart from any late and
unecessary injury for the last 5 minutes as Ajax continued to press forward.
Richard Witschge celebrated his return from a loan spell at Alaves with a
freekick goal in the 90th minute to give Ajax the win and the trophy!!!!
Rafael van der Vaart was voted Player of the Tournament!!!
|
| Ajax
recall Fred Grim |
03 Aug 2002
|
| Ajax
beat Manchester United 2 -1 |
03 Aug 2002
|
|
The Red Devils seemed not to be taking theirng Amsterdam Tournament match very seriously as it kicked off. In theng spell Van der Vaart hit the bar with a header as the Amsterdammers
looked more hungry to please their fans and themselves. The young keeper
Marten Stekelenburg put on a good, solid performance, coolly coping with a
Van Nistelrooy attack. United slowly turned on the juice and started to
control the match with their flowing passing style until Victor Sikora
scored his first goal for Ajax from a Tomás
Galásek free-kick in the 39th minute.
Giggs missed narrowly with a header in the 45th as United started to push
forward. After the break Ajax maintained the pressure while United
failed to make much impression on the Ajax backline. Pienaar, Mido and
Winter came on for Van der Vaart, Van der Meyde and Sikora so that the
Amsterdammers operated for the rest of the match with two strikers
instead of the ' classic' two wingers. A great through ball by Giggs in the
69th gave Keane the chance to shoot from close range but Stekelenburg was as
sharp as ever in stopping it. Wamberto came on for Maxwell in the 72nd.
Zlatan was suddenly free in the 75th to slip the ball past the limping
Barthez for the 2-0. Chivu had put in a great performance but left with a
slight injury in the 76th to be replaced by Pasanen. Scholes got one
back from a fine Keane ball for the 2-1. All in all an Ajax performance that
promises much for next weekend's SupCup clash with PSV and the coming Ere
Divisie season.
|
| Ajax's
keeper problems grow! |
02 Aug 2002
|
|
Ajax have a serious keeper problem indeed now
that Bogdan Lobont's MRI-scan has revealed an injury which will keep him out
of action for at least the coming 6 weeks with the threat of a possible 4
months absence if surgery is required to repair the damage to the Romanian's
shoulder! Second-choice goalie Joe Didulica is also on the injured list,
leaving 19 year-old Maarten Stekelenburg defending goal during this
weekend's Amsterdam Tournament. Jong Ajax's Robert Zwinkels has been added
to the squad for the time being and will take his place on the bench for the
matches against Manchester United tonight and Barcelona on Sunday evening.
|
| Ajax
in serious keeper problems |
02 Aug 2002
|
|
Ajax are faced with a serious goalkeeper problem as
they prepare for theng of the new Ere Divisie season. Their
Australian reserve-keeper Joe Didulica picked up an ankle injury several weeks
ago and no.1 choice Bogdan Lobont has developed a shoulder problem which
he'll be going into hospital to have scanned today. If the MRI-scan reveals a
serious injury the Amsterdammers will consider buying another keeper. The ArenA
side's 3rd choice goalie is 20 year-old Maarten Stekelenburg who'll have the
daunting task of defending goal against Manchester United and Barcelona during
this weekend's Amsterdam Tournament!
|
| NEC
beat Jong Ajax 5-1 |
02 Aug 2002
|
|
Jong Ajax created a new record last season by
beating several Ere Divisie sides to reach the semi-finals of the Amstel Cup
but last night they were given a severe 5-1 beating by Ere Divisie NEC in
the traditional Helderse Maritime tournament. Fielding Nikos Machlas, Cedric
van der Gun and Ferdi Vierklau the Amsterdammers were still outclassed by
Johan Neesken's team who looked particularly strong in theng half.
Frank Demouged the score in the 10th minute, rounding off a fine piece
of work by former Ajax player Youssouf Hersi who put away the 2nd only 10
minutes later before Demouge got his 2nd for the 3-0 on the stroke of
halftime. Nikos Machlas got one back for the Amsterdammers shortly after the
break but NEC's Dennis de Nooijer scored the best goal of the match in the
63rd for the 4-1 before Ferdi Vieklau made Jong Ajax's misery complete by
scoring an own goal.
|
| Ajax's
Richard Knopper off to Greece! |
01 Aug 2002
|
|
Ajax's Richard Knopper will be playing in Greece next
season for Aris FC. The Amsterdammers have hired out the 24 year-old midfielder,
who's under contract at the ArenA till 2005, for one year. Knopper was voted
'Talent of the Year' in 1998 by the Ajax supporters but a series of injuries
have side-lined him. He made his debut on November 1997 in the 0-5 away win
against Sparta and has so far played a total of 66 matches, scoring 19
goals, in the Ajax shirt. Last season he had an
unsuccessful trial with English Premiership side Sunderland.
|
| Tim
de Cler set for West Bromwich trial |
31 July 2002
|
| Sparta's
Da Silva moves to Ajax? |
31 July 2002
|
|
Dutch newspaper "Rotterdams Dagblad"
has reported that Sparta's David Mendes da Silva will be following his
former teammate Nourdin Boukhari to Ajax. The clubs have agreed terms for
the 19 year-old's transfer but have agreed that he'll continue to play for
Sparta in the Eerste Divisie next season, something the player does not want
at all! The midfielder feels that it would be detrimental to his progress as
a player and wants an immediate move to the ArenA. So far neither club has
made an official statement regarding the news. Earlier
this year the Amsterdammers as well as English Premiership side Newcastle
United were both linked with the young talent.
|
| Ajax
hire out Ikedia to Groningen |
30 July 2002
|
|
Ajax are hiring out Pius
Ikedia to Groningen for the coming season. The 22 year-old Nigerian winger
arrived at the ArenA in 1999, and has a contract which runs till 2004, but has
no chance of a place in the starting lineup under Ronald Koeman who's trying to
cut back his squad from 26 to 22 players. Ikedia has played 25 matches for Ajax,
scoring twice.
|
| Ajax
beat Norwich City 1-0 |
27 July 2002
|
|
Ajax have won the second friendly of their
mini-tour of England and Scotland with a 1-0 win at Norwich City. The
young Swedish international striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored the only
goal of the match in theng half. Contrary to the formation fielded
against Celtic, coach Ronald Koeman fielded two wingers, Andy van der
Meyde and Wamberto. Although Nikos Machlas was the oringinal choice for
the central strike-role he was deemed not fit enough and Zlatan got a
chance to show he really can score goals! New signing Victor Sikora made
his debut for the Amsterdammers in the 2nd half, replacing Wamberto. Ajax
lined-up for the kickoff with Maarten Stekelenburg replacing the injured
Bogdon Lobont in goal while Jan van Halst, Petri Pasanen, Richard
Witschge, Nourdin Boukhari and Steven Pienaar, who are all on the injured
list, had to watch from the stands.
|
| Ajax
beat Celtic 3 - 1 |
25 July 2002
|
|
Ajax won last night's friendly against Scottish
side Glasgow Celtic 3-1, with all their goals scored in theng 22
minutes of the match. The Amsterdammers' victory, playing without their
new wingers Victor Sikora and Nardin Boukhari, was a little bit of sweet
revenge for last season's Champions League defeat by Celtic. Mido scored
two of the goals and Zlatan Ibrahimovic put away the third, with Sutton
getting one back for the Glaswegians after the break. Ronald Koeman chose
to field a 3-3-2-2 formation instead of his preferred 4-3-3 as he is
planning to use this system against C-L opponents and top teams in the Ere
Divisie next season. The match against Celtic seemed a good opportunity to
try it out but the Scottish champions, who'd already lost a friendly
against Bundesliga side Werder Bremen 6-2, proved to be a weak opponent.
That was partly due to the fine performance of the multi-national Ajax
lineup (with no less than 9 nationalities). After the break the home team
improved their performance considerably and showed more initative but were
only rewarded with the one goal. Goalie Bogdan Lobont (Romania)
made a good impression while Pasanen (Finland), Chivu (Romania) and
Bergdölmo (Norway) looked solid in defence. Trabelsi (Tunisia) and
O'Brien (United States) took care of the flanks while Maxwell (Brazil)
controlled the centre. Van der Vaart (Holland) and Seedorf (Holland),
making his debut, were the attacking midfielders. Ibrahimovic (Sweden) and
Mido (Egypt) formed an effective duo upfront. After the break Winter, Van
der Meyde and Yakubu had their chance to play 45 minutes while Wamberto
and Machlas substituted.
|
|
Tottenham
Hotspur target Nikos Machlas
|
24 July 2002
|
|
Ajax's Greek striker Nikos Machlas is
being targeted by English Premiership side Tottenham Hotspur. The
North-London club have approached Machlas' agent Søren Lerby for a
video showing the highlights of the former Golden Boot award winner's
career. The Amsterdammers seem willing to let him go as they try to
cut down on the number of players in the squad but will the Spurs be
prepared to cough up the 5 million Euros being asked for the 29
year-old?
|
|
Ajax
sign Nourdin Boukhari
|
23 July 2002
|
|
Ronald Koeman shouldn't be losing any
more sleep concerning the left-flank of his team after Ajax snapped up
Sparta's Nourdin Boukhari today. The 22 year-old forward has signed a
deal for 4 years with the Amsterdammers and the (unknown) amount of
money paid will undoubtedly help financially troubled Sparta out of
some of their remaining debt-problems while strengthening their
position as they attempt to gain a new licence for next season from
the Dutch FA (KNVB). The left-footed player made his debut for the
Rotterdammers' first team lineup on February 9th of this year and was
under contract till 2003. Boukhari left Holland this afternoon to join
Ajax's squad who've travelled to Scotland for tomorrow's friendly
against Glasgow Celtic.
|
| No
return to Ajax for Litmanen |
23 July 2002
|
|
There will be no return to Ajax for Finnish
star Jari Litmanen after the Amsterdammers' technical director Leo
Beenhakker explained that the striker's personal terms could not be
met by the ArenA side. Having just signed Victor Sikora, and with a
squad bloated by too many 'expensive' players (including the
ridiculously over-rated Zlatan who's on something like a million Euros
a year!), Ajax simply don't have the cash to support another top-wage
earner! Despite Ronald Koeman's and the fans' enthousiasm to see
Litmanen's skills on show again the Fin will have to look elsewhere in
the bleak transfer market for a new employer. Watch out for our
coming Speakers Corner story on the current crisis in football!
|
|
Darl
Douglas on trial with Oldham Athletic |
23 July 2002
|
|
Ajax's Darl Douglas is currently on trial
with English side Oldham Athletic. He was on loan to Eerste Divisie
Haarlem, who have a cooperation pact with the Amsterdammers, but a
clause in his contract allows him to leave if he earns a deal with
another club. Oldham-manager Ian Dowie is already familiar with
Douglas saying, "He's a player with flair who can pass opponents
easily and we'll see how he does in the coming week. Hopefully he'll
be able to show his stuff in a couple of friendlies we've got lined
up". Haarlem
chairman Aad Goedhart is quoted in local newspaper the 'Haarlems
Dagblad' as saying that if
the trial is unsuccessful Douglas will return to continue with the
Eerste Divisie side.
|
|
Ajax
sign Nourdin Boukhari
|
23 July 2002
|
|
Ronald Koeman shouldn't be losing any
more sleep concerning the left-flank of his team after Ajax snapped up
Sparta's Nourdin Boukhari today. The 22 year-old forward has signed a
deal for 4 years with the Amsterdammers and the (unknown) amount of
money paid will undoubtedly help financially troubled Sparta out of
some of their remaining debt-problems while strenghtening their
position as they attempt to gain a new licence for next season from
the Dutch FA (KNVB). The left-footed player made his debut for the
Rotterdammers' first team lineup on February 9th of this year and was
under contract till 2003. Boukhari left Holland this afternoon to join
Ajax's squad who've travelled to Scotland for tomorrow's friendly
against Glasgow Celtic.
|
|
Ajax's Didulica injured in training
|
23 July 2002
|
|
Ajax travel to Scotland for their coming friendly against Glasgow
Celtic on Wednesday evening without their Australian keeper Joe Didulica
after he picked up an ankle injury in training which will keep him out of
action for the coming 6 weeks. Didulica, who's competing with Bogdan
Lobont and Maarten Stekelenburg for a place in goal, will miss the coming
Dutch SuperCup match for the Johan Cruijff trophy and the start of
the new ' Holland Casino' Eredivisie season.
|
| No Ajax contract for Ognjenovic |
23 July 2002
|
|
Ajax have decided not to offer Yugoslavian
winger Perica Ognjenovic a contract after watching him in training and
in action during the friendly against Emmen at the weekend, even though
he scored twice. The signing of Victor Sikora, plus the fact that coach
Ronald Koeman is trying to trim the squad down from 26 to 22 players,
means there's simply no room for the 25 year-old former Red Star
Belgrade, Real Madrid and 1.FC Kaiserslautern player at the ArenA.
|
| Sikora
signs for Ajax! |
22 July 2002
|
Victor Sikora is on his way to Ajax on a
contract for 4 years after the
transfer to English Premiership side Fulham fell through at the weekend.
The Dutch international will be presented to the press at the ArenA later
today
after which the winger will immediately commence training with Ronald
Koeman's squad. Ajax are remaining tight-lipped concerning the exact
details of the deal but it's generally accepted that Vitesse chairman Jos
Vaessen will be receiving the last offer made by the Amsterdammers (ca.
€4.5 million Euros). Ajax's general director Arie van Eijden said that
he's pleased with the signing which results in a happy coach-Koeman and
the opportunity to add a vital ingredient to the lineup for the coming
season.
Koeman, who worked with Sikora at Vitesse, is relieved that he's been able
to fill in the missing piece of his footballing puzzle and expects great
things of the 24 year-old, who's often been compared with Marc Overmars.
Born in Deventer on April 11th 1978, Sikora has played 84 matches for
Vitesse in 3 seasons at the Gelredome, scoring 20 goals. He began his
career with Deventer amateur club DVV Roda, going professional with Go
Ahead Eagles in 1994 and putting away 34 goals in 107 Eerste Divisie
matches up till 1999, before moving to Arnhem. He made his Oranje debut on
February 28th 2001, substituting for Marc Overmars in the 66th minute of
the match against Turkey.
|
| Ajax
trio home alone! |
22 July 2002
|
|
Cedric van der Gun, Pius Ikedia and Tim de Cler
are staying at home while Ajax travel to England and Scotland for a
mini-tour this week as Ronald Koeman tries to decide who will be dropped
from the over-populated squad of 26 players at the ArenA. ''I've seen
everyone at work now and need to trim back the squad to a more realistic
22 players", said Koeman after the latest friendly against Emmen
(Ajax won 8-0). "We'll soon see during the next few weeks if my
decision has been the right one!" Ajax will play Celtic in Glasgow on
Wednesday and Norwich City this coming Saturday before returning to
prepare for the Amsterdam Tournament which takes place during the first
weekend of August.
|
| Liverpool
let Ajax favourite Litmanen go! |
22 July 2002
|
|
Liverpool have turned their back on Finnish
former Ajax striker Jari Litmanen! He's been told that there's no room for
him in the squad at Anfield Road and, after only playing in 26 matches for
"The Reds" (and 14 of those as substitute) he's likely to leave
transfer-free. With five other strikers to choose from (Michael Owen,
Emile Heskey, Milan Baros and the recently signed El-Hadji Diouf) manager
Gérard Houllier figures that Litmanen has the least chance of getting a
match. Nevertheless, the crowd favourite (at both Ajax and Liverpool) has
never complained about his treatment and has still managed to score 5
goals under the adverse conditions he's experienced at his 'favourite'
club! Several of "The Reds" supporters sites are crying shame at
his treatment, claiming that the Fin is one of the most creative players
to ever grace the fields of English football and has never been given a
serious chance to shine! Who knows - if Ajax have their wits about them
they'll snap him up and bring him to the ArenA!
|
| Sikora
off to Ajax after Fulham surprise! |
21 July 2002
|
| Ajax
want Roda's Tom Soetaers? |
20 July 2002
|
|
Roda's Belgian left-winger Tom Soetaers is
rumoured to be Ajax's next candidate for the position they previously had
hoped to fill with Victor Sikora until the former Vitesse player signed
for English Premiership side Fulham. Roda's Nol Hendriks has told
provincial newspaper the "Limburgs Dagblad" that they have heard
of the Amsterdammers' interest but have not received an official enquiry
yet. "If Ajax are prepared to pay our price they can have him",
he said. Considering the fact that Ajax did not have enough money to sign
Sikora it remains to be seen if they can meet Roda's asking price.
|
| Fulham
and Sikora agree terms |
18 July 2002
|
| Brutil
Hosé on trial with Dordrecht |
18 July 2002
|
|
Brutil Hosé is going to try and convince
Eerste Divisie side Dordrecht to offer him a contract. The forward has
become superfluous at Ajax and, after a short loan-spell at Haarlem plus
unsuccessful trials with English clubs Middlesbrough and Sunderland, he
hopes that he'll finally find a new employer. The 22 year-old, who is
currently a member of the Amsterdammers' Jong Ajax squad, was dropped from
the 1st team squad by Co Adriaanse in the 2000/2001 season and
spent a few months on loan to De Graafschap who quickly returned the
temperamental striker.
|
| Ajax
scrape past Haarlem 1-0 |
18 July 2002
|
|
Ajax failed to convince against their 'partner
club' Eerste Divisie Haarlem last night, only managing to score one goal.
Zlatan Ibrahimovich put away the lonely goal after being 'king of the
missers' in theng half. He wasn't the only one who failed to impress
as, despite dominating theng 45 minutes, the Amsterdammers didn't
convert their 'superiority' into balls-in-the-back-of-the-net! They were
especially weak after the break and Koeman's 9 substitutions, including
Yugoslavian winger Perica Ognjenovic
(on trial), resulted in no improvement at all.
|
| Ognjenovic
gets trial with Ajax |
18 July 2002
|
|
Perica Ognjenovic has been offered a
trial with Ajax. The 25 year-old Yugoslavian winger will be trying to
impress coach Ronald Koeman during the coming days as Ajax try to find an
alternative for Vitesse's Victor Sikora who's signed for Fulham.
Ognjenovic was once regarded as one of the most promising players in
Europe when he was playing for Red Star Belgrade and clubs were queueing
up to sign him. Real Madrid, coached at the time by Guus Hiddink, finally
snapped him up. A long-term injury problem meant he played only 12 matches
for the Spanish club in one and a half seasons and, due to the heavy
burden of his extravagant salary, he was allowed to leave transfer-free.
At the beginning of this year he signed for German side FC Kaiserslautern
but also failed to make much of an impression, making only two appearances
as a substitute. He was given the chance to play in last night's friendly
against Eerste Divisie Haarlem which the Amsterdammers won 1-0.
|
| Yulu
on trial with Ajax's reserves |
17 July 2002
|
| Ajax
lose Hoogervorst to Spain |
17 July 2002
|
|
Ajax are to lose yet another of their youth
players to a foreign club - Jeffrey Hoogervorst has signed a
contract with Spanish side Sporting Gijón. The 18 year-old central
defender had a successful trial back in May with the club from the
province of Asturië who ended 6th in the Segunda División. Hoogervorst
was looking for a move abroad and Spain in particular because he wanted to
emigrate there. Next season the youth international will be hired out for
a year to Marino de Luanco, a club in the Segunda División B, with the
intention that he return to play for Gijón in the 2003/2004 season.
|
| Ajax
lend Jason Culina to De Graafschap |
16 July 2002
|
|
Ajax are hiring out their young midfielder
Jason Culina to De Graafschap for next season. The Australian hopes to see
some first team action in Doetinchem with coach Peter Bosz's side. Since
his arrival in 1999 the left-footed player has not got further than
reserve duty at the ArenA, apart from one first team appearance during the
Amsterdam Tournament in 1999. Last season the 21 year-old returned to Ajax
after a loan spell with the Amsterdammers' Belgian satellite club GB
Antwerpen and reached the semi-finals of the Amstel Cup with Ajax 2,
scoring a goal in each of the two previous rounds. Culina remains under
contract with Ajax till 2004.
|
| Ajax
win friendly against AGOVV 7-0 |
14 July 2002
|
|
Ajax have won their
latest pre-season friendly against amateurs AGOVV. The Amsterdammers beat
the club from Apeldoorn, who hope to go professional in 2003, 7-0. Ajax
had to miss Rafael van der Vaart who picked up a calf strain in the
pre-match warm-up.
|
| Zlatan
stays at Ajax |
12 July 2002
|
|
Zlatan Ibrahimovich will be staying at Ajax
next season after talks between himself, his agent Anders Carlsson and AS
Roma ended with the sensible decision to stay and mature at the ArenA
rather than try to compete with the likes of high-flying sharp-shooters
Totti, Delvecchio, Batitusta and Montella at the Serie A giants. After
spending much of last season on the bench in Amsterdam and failing to
convince when on pitch (apart from getting the winning Amstel Cup goal
against Utrecht) it seems only right that the youngster stay put and find
his feet, hopefully maturing into the kind of goal-scoring talent that
others say he is!
|
| Ajax
win friendly 0-11 |
12 July 2002
|
|
Ajax have won their third friendly of the
summer, beating amateurs Achilles'12, who were celebrating their 90th
anniversary, 11-0. Rafael van der Vaart again showed he's back in tip-top
form with 4 goals, Nikos Machlas got 2, Andre Bergdølmo, Cedric van der
Gun, Stefano Seedorf, Abubakari Yakubu and an own goal by their opponents
took care of the remainder.
|
| Sikora
move to Ajax off! |
10 July 2002
|
|
According to Amsterdam's local television
station AT5, Ronald Koeman is resigned to the fact that Vitesse's Victor
Sikora will not be coming to the ArenA and the coach has started looking
for another left-winger to reinforce his squad. The last offer Ajax made
of €4 million Euros and midfielder Richard Knopper has been
rejected and it looks as if Sikora will be staying at the Gelredome unless
English Premiership side Fulham succeed in making an offer Vitesse can't
refuse.
|
| Ajax
offer Knopper plus 4 million for Sikora |
08 July 2002
|
| Beenhakker
denies Chivu - Real story |
08 July 2002
|
|
Spanish sports magazine AS published a story in
recent days quoting Ajax's technical director Leo Beenhakker as saying
that the Amsterdammers' Romanian international Christian Chivu was still
available to the right bidder. The former Feyenoord trainer has now jumped
in to put an end to all the rumours that have been circulating linking
Real Madrid to the defender. Apparently Chivu isn't interested in a move
to Real (just yet!) and Beenhakker himself has not even talked to the
magazine concerned!
|
| Ajax
win first friendly |
06 July 2002
|
|
Ajax have won their first friendly of the
summer with a simple 8-1 win against former neighbours, amateur side
Zeeburgia. Rafael van der Vaart showed he's back in form and on target
after a long absence through injury, putting away 2 goals in theng
30 minutes. By half-time Ajax were 5-0 up thanks to goals by Pasanen,
Chivu and Mido. After the break only Tomás Galásek and Yakubu of the 1st
half eleven returned but their 2nd half colleagues were not as sharp. Only
Maxwell, Van der Gun and Pienaar found the back of the net. Zeeburgia's
Remco Worst put one consolation goal past Bogdan Lobont.
|
| Ajax's
Pre-season friendlies |
06 July 2002
|
| Date |
Opponent |
Location |
Kickoff |
| 06/07 |
Zeeburgia |
AWAY |
14:30 |
| 09/07 |
Be
Quick |
AWAY |
19:30 |
| 11/07 |
Achilles
'12 |
AWAY |
19:30 |
| 13/07 |
AGOVV |
AWAY |
14:30 |
| 17/07 |
Haarlem |
AWAY |
19:30 |
| 20/07 |
Emmen |
AWAY |
18:30
|
| 24/07 |
Celtic(Scotland) |
AWAY |
19:45 |
| 27/07 |
Norwich
City (England) |
AWAY |
15:00 |
| 02/08 |
Man
United (England)
AmsterdamTournament |
Home |
21:15 |
| 04/08 |
Barcelona
(Spain)
Amsterdam Tournament |
Home |
21:15 |
|
| Ajax
have first pre-season training |
04 July 2002
|
| Ajax
have held their first pre-season training with an almost completely fit
squad including the returned-from-injury Rafael van der Vaart, Johnny
Heitinga, Pius Ikedia and Cedric van der Gun. Only the World cup trio John
O'Brien (United States), Hatem Trabelsi (Tunisia) and Zlatan Ibrahimovic
(Sweden) were still missing. Richard Witschge, Aron Winter and Bogdan
Lobont were also back-on-view after their various loan spells with other
clubs and Winter in particular was looking forward to working with Koeman.
"The current team lacks experience and it'll be my job to provide it
- I've been given the task to motivate the team both on and off the pitch.
I understand full well that last season's starting-eleven have priority
but there are a lot of matches in a season and I still have a contribution
to make. I want to play perhaps one more year and then I think I'll hang
up my boots. On the other hand, never say never because I definitely don't
feel like I'm 35 years old and could still decide to go on!"
|
| Fulham
battle with Ajax for Sikora |
03 July 2002
|
| Fulham
have joined the battle with Ajax for the signature of Vitesse striker
Victor Sikora. The English Premiership side have made an official enquiry
for the Dutch international, upping the pressure on Ajax to improve their
offer of €4 million Euros. The fact that Vitesse have received their
professional licence for next season and have cleared most of their debts
with the sale of Michel Kreek, Mahamadou Diarra and Remco van der Schaaf
means they are no longer in a hurry to sell Sikora for a bargain-basement
price. Sikora himself is not worried about the situation and, after
separate talks with Ajax's Leo Beenhakker and Ronald Koeman, expects that
a deal will be done within the near future.
|
| RKC
poised to sign Serghhino Greene |
03 July 2002
|
| RKC
Waalwijk seem to have found the required defensive reinforcement for next
season in the shape of Ajax's Serginho Greene after an earlier, unfruitful
attempt to sign Roda's Regilio Vrede. The 20 year-old was on loan to
Haarlem last season and is poised to sign a contract for two years with
the Waalwijkers.
|
| Vitesse
reject latest Ajax bid for Sikora |
02 July 2002
|
| Ajax
make new bid for Sikora |
02 July 2002
|
| According
to a report in Dutch provincial newspaper "Dagblad De Gelderlander",
Ajax are poised to make a new bid for Vitesse's Victor Sikora. The
Amsterdammers have supposedly made an offer of €4 million Euros for the
24 year-old international after the Arnhemmers had turned down an
earlier bid of €2 million. Sikora, who is under contract at the
Gelredome till 2005, already agreed terms with Ajax at the end of May.
|
| Ajax
to sell share in GB Antwerpen |
01 July 2002
|
| Ajax
are negotiating with several candidates who they are lining up to buy out
their major share in Germinal Beerschot Antwerpen. The Amsterdammers have
been major shareholders since June 30th 2000 and currently possess 72.5%
of the club's stock. Ajax will not be cutting all links and plan to
continue sharing technical know-how with their Belgian satellite club just
as they do with Haarlem. To that end they've already stalled Aaron
Mokoena, Walker Fronio, Kwame Quansah and Anthony Obodai with GBA for next
season. A likely reason for the sale is to raise money in order for Ajax
to be able to buy some new players. They'd like to add Victor Sikora and
Denny Landzaat to the squad but first need some cash before they can spend
some!
|
| Ajax
go back to old shirt system |
28 Jun 2002
|
Ajax
have overturned their decision to make changes in the shirt numbers to be
handed out to players for next season after protests from fans. The new
system was an idea of the technical staff but proved not only to be
problematic in implementation but also unpopular with the Amsterdammers'
following. They've decided to retain last season's numbering which means
that the no.10 shirt will go not to Rafael van der Vaart (he stays no.23)
but to relative newcomer Steven Pienaar. Cristian Chivu (no.5), John
O'Brien (no.18) and Tomás Galásek (no.4) all hold on to their shirts and
'prodigal veteran' Aron Winter profits by getting the no.6 instead of
having to make do with the no.26.
The full list of players and shirt numbers for the 2002/2003 season is as
follows: 1. Lobont, 2. Trabelsi, 3. Bergdolmo, 4. Galásek,
5. Chivu, 6. Winter, 7. Van der Meyde, 8. Witschge, 9. Ibrahimovic,
10. Pienaar, 11. Hossam, 12. Heitinga, 13. Maxwell, 14. Van Halst, 15. De
Cler, 16. Pasanen, 17. Wamberto, 18. O'Brien, 19. Machlas, 20. Van der Gun,
21. Didulica, 22. Yakubu, 23. Van der Vaart, 24. Van Damme, 25. Ikedia,
31. Stekelenburg.
|
| Koeman
still fears losing Chivu |
27 Jun 2002
|
| Ajax
coach Ronald Koeman is still worried that Real Madrid will swoop to sign
Christian Chivu. Although a deadline has passed, which would have made it
possible for the Spanish giants to make use of a clause in his contract to
snap up the Romanian international for a 'bargain price', Koeman still
believes that Real will make a move for the Amsterdammers' captain in the
near future. Clubs in Holland simple can't afford to pay the kind of wages
English, Spanish and Italian clubs pay their players and Koeman expects
Civu will be lure elsewhere at some point. It would be a huge blow to the
Ajax coach's plans for the future but for the time being he will continue
to build a team around Chivu's undeniable talent.
|
| Leo
van Veen temporary trainer at Haarlem |
24 Jun 2002
|
| Leo van
Veen will take over as temporary trainer at Haarlem while
Heini Otto recovers from his heart operation. Van Veen was trainer at
Ajax last season but became superfluous at the ArenA when Co Adriaanse was
dismissed and Ronald Koeman arrived. He was given a job with the scouting
staff but made known that he'd prefer to work with the players and has now
been given the chance to do just that at Eerste Divisie Haarlem with whom
the Amsterdammers have a cooperation pact.
|
| Winter
and Witschge return to Ajax |
21 Jun 2002
|
Aron
Winter's is the most surprising name in the list of players for Ajax's 1st
team squad for next season. The 35 year-old, who was on loan to Sparta
last season, was told in March by technical director Leo Beenhakker that
there wouldn't be room for him at the ArenA on his return from Rotterdam
but coach Ronald Koeman has insisted he be brought back! The veteran
international's experience could be of great value to the team next
season. Richard Witschge is also returning from his loan spell at Spanish
side Alaves where has been since former coach Co Adriaanse dropped him.
The only new face is that of Belgian youth international Jelle van Damme
who had been playing for the Amsterdammers' Belgian satellite club
Germinal Beerschot Antwerpen.
The full squad with shirt numbers is: Lobont 1,
Trabelsi 2, Bergdolmo 3, Chivu 4, O'Brien 5, Galasek 6, Van der Meyde 7,
Witschge 8, Ibrahimovich 9, Van der Vaart 10, Ahmed 'Mido' Hossam
11, Heitinga 12, Pasanen 13, Van Damme 14, De Cler 15 , Van Halst 16,
Wamberto 17, Maxwell 18, Machlas 19, Pienaar 20, Didulica 21, Yakubu 23,
Ikedia 25, Winter 26, Van der Gun 27, Stekelenburg 31.
|
| Van
der Vaart gets no.10 shirt next season |
21 Jun 2002
|
| Ajax's
Rafael van der Vaart will be wearing the no.10 shirt when he returns to
action next season. The 19 year-old central midfielder had been wearing
the no.23 shirt when he scored his 14 goals in 20 matches before a serious
knee injury kept him out of action for most of the latter half of the
season. Richard Witschge is returning to Ajax and will be given his
familiar no.8 shirt while Zlatan Ibrahimovic, if he's still with the club,
will be given the no.9 shirt to wear.
|
| RBC
add Oliseh plus Heije and Piqué |
14 Jun 2002
|
| RBC
Roosendaal are reinforcing their defence in preparation for their 2nd Ere
Divisie adventure and, after already signing David
Nascimento and Melvin Fleur, have added
Utrecht's Azubuike Oliseh plus Ajax's wing-defenders Pascal Heije and Mitchell Piqué to their squad for next season. Two
seasons ago RBC let in 90 goals and have no intention on making the same
mistake again! Oliseh was under
contract at the Domstad side till 2003, and has been allowed a free-transfer after spending
the last few months on loan to Finnish side FC Jokerit. Piqué has only
played 4 matches in 3 seasons for Ajax, was on loan to Haarlem last season
where the 22 year-old played 14 matches and the season before that was on
loan to Twente. Twenty-two year-old Heije has been on loan to the
Roosendaalers for the last 2 seasons. RBC have now acquired 4 defenders and are looking to add
another two Den Bosch players to the squad.
|
| Jason
Culina on trial with Sturm Graz |
13 Jun 2002
|
| Jason
Culina is currently on trial with Austrian side Sturm Graz. The Ajax 2
(reserve team) midfielder has already had his first training session with
the squad as they prepare for the coming season. The 21 year-old
Australian was on loan to the Amsterdammers' Belgian satellite club GB
Antwerp in the 2000/2001 season and last season played for Jong Ajax (Ajax
2/ reserve team).
|
| Ajax
to bring back Litmanen? |
30 May 2002
|
| Ajax
are apparently thinking of bringing back Jari Litmanen, one of the
Amsterdammers' all-time favourite players, to the ArenA! The Finnish
striker has seen little action since moving to play for Liverpool last
season and has had to watch from the bench as Emile Heskey and Michael
Owen have been given preference. Manager Gerard Houllier is also planning
to add another striker to the squad which means there's even less chance
of him getting to play in the future. Ronald Koeman is a fan of the former
Barcelona player and would love to add his experience to Ajax's young
squad. Litmanen won the European Cup with Ajax in 1995 and there have been
rumours circulating for some time linking him with a return to Ajax. |
| Ajax
hire out Ruud Kras to Zwolle |
30 May 2002
|
| Ajax
are hiring out Ruud Kras to Zwolle next season. The 20 year-old defender
joined the Amsterdammers from Volendam last summer and has been playing
for the reserve team, Jong Ajax, who were reserve Champions as well as
reaching the semi-finals of the Amstel Cup.
|
| Van
der Lem new Jong Ajax coach |
30 May 2002
|
| Gerard
van der Lem succeeds Jan Olde Riekerink as Jong Ajax coach. The 49 year-old
trainer, who's signed a deal for one year, was Louis van Gaal's assistant
between 1990 and 1997 when the team won 4 league titles, a KNVB Trophy
(now the Amstel Cup), 3 SuperCups, the UEFA Cup, the European Supercup and
the Champions League. When Van Gaal left for Barcelona in 1997 Van
der Lem went with him and the duo won 2 Spanish La Liga titles, a Copa del
Rey (Spanish Cup) and 1 European Supercup. In 1999 the former FC
Amsterdam, Roda JC, Feyenoord, Sparta and Utrecht player was approached by
AZ and he served as the Alkmaarders coach till March 2001 after which he
went to Oita Trinita in Japan.
|
| Chivu
stays, Zlatan to go |
27 May 2002
|
| Christian
Chivu has turned down an offer to play for Real Madrid and confirmed that
he'll be staying with Ajax for at least another year. The Romanian
defender wants to play Champions League football next season with the
Amsterdammers and if Ajax blossom, as they look like doing after the
summer, he might be persuaded to stay for the 2003/2004 season too!
Teammate Zlatan Ibrahimovich looks set to leave for Italy where several
clubs are said to be interested with AS Roma heading the pack. The Swedish
international has just scored 2 goals for his country in a pre-World Cup
friendly.
|
| Ajax
sign Victor Sikora this weekend? |
24 May 2002
|
| According
to reports in Holland, Ajax are apparently planning to present their
latest signing Victor Sikora to the press this weekend. The Vitesse
striker has been linked with a move to the ArenA for some time now and a
reunion with Ronald Koeman is at hand! The 24 year-old will be the long
wished for left-winger that Koeman wants to complete his frontline after
the unsuccessful experiment with Mido last season. Mahamadou Diarra and
Denny Landzaat are still on the coach's shopping list but Ajax will
probably have to sell a player or two to raise the cash. Willem II have
said they want a princely €9 million Euros for Landzaat and a possible
part-exchange for Tomás Galásek is too expensive for the
"Tricolores" due to his equally princely wages.
|
| Ajax
willing to sell Zlatan |
24 May 2002
|
| Ronald
Koeman has revealed that Ajax will be willing to let Zlatan Ibrahimovic
leave the ArenA if the right offer is made! Speaking on Amsterdam's local
TV station AT5 the coach said, "It's clear that Mido is currently my
1st choice as central striker and we areto offers for Zlatan. As
things stand it's more likely we'll let him go than Machlas". The
young Swedish international was the club's most expensive signing (at €9
million Euros) and much was expected of him when he arrived last summer
but he has failed to ignite! It shouldn't prove a problem to sell
him as Roma have already expressed interest and others are bound to join
the queue.
|
| Stefano
Seedorf in Ajax 1st team squad |
24 May 2002
|
| Stefano
Seedorf will be joining the 1st team squad at Ajax next season. Clarence
Seedorf's younger brother will be accompanied by Jelle van Damme, a
Belgian central defender who joined from the Amsterdammers' satellite club
GB Antwerpen last season.
|
| Ajax's
Walker off to GB Antwerp |
17 May 2002
|
| Ajax's
Fronio Walker is being hired out to the club's Belgian satellite club
Germinal Beerschot Antwerpen next season. The 20 year-old central
defender, who will be joined by Anthony
Obodai, was captain of the Brazilian youth team that won the World Cup
in 1999.
|
| Ajax
test two GBA players |
16 May 2002
|
| Ajax
made use of the friendly played against the Dutch national team Oranje in
Amsterdam's Olympic Stadium last night to test two players, Paul Kpaka and
Kristof Snelders. Both currently play for Ajax's Belgian satellite club
Germinal Beerschot Antwerpen. Kpaka has put in a good season, scoring 25
goals, but failed to make much of an impression against the Oranje
backline of André Ooijer and Jaap Stam. Snelders had to make do with a
role as substitute and equally failed to draw attention to himself.
|
| Ajax's
Anthony Obodai on loan to GBA |
16 May 2002
|
| Ajax
are hiring out their Ghanian midfielder Anthony Obodai for next season.
The 19 year-old has been playing for Jong Ajax who recently created Dutch
footballing history by being the first reserve team to reach the
semi-finals of the Amstel Cup. They were knocked out by Utrecht who went
on to lose the final to Ajax.
|
| Oranje
beat Ajax |
16 May 2002
|
| Oranje
beat an Ajax team 3-0 behind closed doors (no fans were allowed in) at
Amsterdam's Olympic stadium last night as the Dutch national team prepared
for their friendly against the United States on Sunday. Philip Cocu scored
twice and Roy Makaay the 3rd goal for Oranje. Andy van der Meyde, in his
debut for Holland, was clearly suffering from nerves and showed little of
the talent he's put on show for Ajax this last season. Rafael van der
Vaart played his first game in a couple of months, after two knee
operations kept him on the sidelines, but had problems dealing with Edgar
Davids' presence on the opposite side. He did however come closest to
scoring for Ajax but his freekick hit the crossbar!
|
| Chivu
and Zlatan stay at Ajax next season |
14 May 2002
|
| According
to Ajax's technical director Leo Beenhakker, speaking to Dutch daily
newspaper "De Telegraaf", Cristian Chivu and Zlatan Ibrahimovic
will be staying with Ajax next season. The Romanian defender has already
committed himself to staying at the ArenA and AS Roma's interest of last
week in the young Swedish international has evaporated after they heard
that the asking price was €14 million Euros.
|
| Wamberto
extends contract |
15 May 2002
|
| Ajax's
Brazilian forward Wamberto has extended his contract at the ArenA till
2004, with an option for an extra year. The 27 year-old, who scored the
controversial equalizer in the Amstel Cup Final on Sunday, began his
career with Brazilian side São
Luis. After a spell with Sampaio Correira he left for FC Seraing in 1991,
moving on after 5 years to play for Standard Liège. Since moving to
Amsterdam in 1998 he's scored 35 goals in 4 seasons. |
| PSV
face Ajax in SuperCup |
13 May 2002
|
| PSV
will play Ajax in this summer's SuperCup! Traditionally it's a match
played between the Ere Divisie champions and the winners of the Amstel
Cup. Due to the fact that Ajax have won both the Ere Divisie title and the
Amstel Cup PSV, who ended the season in 2nd place, will face the
Amsterdammers on August 11th. Since the KNVB (Dutch FA) renamed the
SuperCup the "Johan Cruijff Schaal" in 1996 PSV have won 5 of
the last 6 matches!
|
| Ajax
win Amstel Cup and do the double!!! |
12 May 2002
|
| The
Amstel Cup was a highly desirable prize for both teams, Utrecht battling
for automatic qualification to play UEFA Cup football and Ajax, having won
the Ere Divisie title, equally desirous of "doing the double" to put
the 'cherry on the cake' of their season. As it was the final 3-2
score was a shock for Utrecht, who'd gotten one hand on the cup but saw it
snatched out of their grasp! A jubilant Ronald Koeman crowns his first (half) season
with Ajax by getting himself in the history books with two trophies. The
match itself started with a minute's silence as a mark of respect for the
Dutch politician Pim Fortuyn who was gunned down earlier this week. Things
got off to a nervous start with Utrecht looking slightly more organised
and cool than Ajax, who lost possession too often, and there was a flurry
of fouls as both teams made clear their mutual dislike. Van der Meyde more
than once revealed a weak spot in the Domstad side's defence and one of
his crosses finally found an unmarked Mido who gratefully put away another
of his 'trademark' headers in the 21st. The goal relaxed the
Amsterdammers no end and they looked increasingly threatening through the
remainder of theng half. Frans Adelaar obviously gave his team
a good talking at the break and they came out fighting for the 2nd
half! They were rewarded with
an equalizer in the 56th when Igor Gluscevic pounced in the box,
hooking the ball past Fred Grim. Utrecht were later awarded a 'controversial
penalty' in the 76th minute and, though Grim almost got his fingers to the
ball, Gluscevic's spot-shot hit the back of the net as the Utrecht
suporters went wild. The last 15 minutes were tense and exciting
tennis-football as Ajax tried to get a goal back, launching wave after
wave of attacks. Zlatan's was the best chance but his effort hit the
bar in the 87th minute. In injury time the hard working
Andy van der Meyde slipped a ball to a very offside looking Wamberto and the
diminutive Brazilian slotted the ball into the roof of the net under
Harald Wapenaar's nose. A very disappointed and angry Utrecht now had to
grit their teeth and go into extra time. They were quickly put out of
their misery as, only 5 minutes after the resumption of play, Zlatan
finally showed us why he's already being called by some the new " Van
Basten", lunging around his opponent with his left foot to hook in
the 'golden goal' !!! Maybe he'll be staying at the
ArenA after all!!! Koeman couldn't be more pleased with the progress the
team has made since he took over and Fred Grim will be equally
over-the-moon with two medals to take into 'retirement' as he hangs
up his boots. Zlatan is grateful to have been the deciding factor and will
perhaps be encouraged to stay in Amsterdam and show us what he's truly
capable of. The double is an achievement that, at the beginning of the
season, Ajax could only dream of and noone else thought possible. Utrecht
will be incredibly disillusioned, disappointed and there could well be
trouble on the streets tonight!
|
| Van
der Vaart returns for Cup Final |
12 May 2002
|
| Ajax's
young star Rafael van der Vaart is back in training with the squad and
could possibly make his reappearance in the Amstel Cup Final against
Utrecht. The talented playmaker, who was recently
voted "Talent of the Year", has been out of action for the
last couple of months since picking up a knee injury. After undergoing two
operations to correct the problem the midfielder, who made such an
important contribution to the team's performances in the first half of the
season, is finally set to return for duty and could even play a
significant role in today's cup battle.
|
| Ajax
to sell Zlatan Ibrahimovich? |
11 May 2002
|
| Ajax
seem likely to sell Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovich this summer after
several Serie A clubs, with AS Roma heading the pack, and Spanish
side Atletico Madrid have reportedly enquired if he's for sale! The 20
year-old has failed to make his mark in Amsterdam since arriving last
summer and could be set to move on to a new club if the right offer (one
which delivers a tidy profit for Ajax!) comes along. Zlatan says he's held
discussions with Ronald Koeman about his current situation and claims he's
been told that, despite his failure to impress so far on-pitch, his
skills are recognised as being superior to those of the current attacking
duo, Machlas and Mido! However, the coach's
wish to play with wingers next season is one which doesn't suit his personal
style and he added that Koeman is on the
look-out for a real no.9 player to spearhead the Ajax attack,
a position Zlatan does not want to play in!
|
| Mido
stays with Ajax!! |
10 May 2002
|
| Ahmed
'Mido' Hossam has been talking about his intention to play out next season
with Ajax, despite recent interest from Liverpool and Inter Milan. He's
only recently managed to 'find his feet' at the Arena and made an
important contribution to Ajax's 28th championship success during the
latter half of the season. After feeling out of place under Co Adriaanse,
who fielded him on the left wing, he managed to persuade Ronald Koeman to
give him a chance at centre-forward where he's put away 10 goals since the
winter break! Although it's flattering to have top European clubs asking
if he wants a move to the Premiership, or the Serie A, the 20 year-old
striker is convinced that what his career really needs now is time
to allow his talents and skills to ripen. The best place for that, for the
time being at least, is with an Ajax side that looks set to make much more
of an impact next season, both in the Ere Divisie and in Europe, than it
has this term! |
| Christian
Chivu "Footballer of the Year" |
07 May 2002
|
| Ajax
captain Christain Chivu has been voted "Footballer of the
Year" in the poll organised every year in Holland by daily
newspaper "De Telegraaf" and "Voetbal International"
magazine. The 21 year-old defender narrowly beat NAC's captain Alfred Schreuder,
who came 2nd , while 3rd place was shared by Heerenveen's "Mighty
Swede" Marcus Allbäck and Utrecht's Dirk Kuyt. Chivu will pick up
his "Gouden Schoen" (Golden Boot) award at a special gala in
September! The "Gouden Schoen" has been awarded since 1982
when Haarlem's Martin Haar was the first recipient and, since then, has
been awarded to such illustrious names as Piet Schrijvers, Johan Cruijff,
Frank Rijkaard (twice), Ruud Gullit, Gerald Vanenburg (twice), Edward
Sturing, Henny Meijer, John Metgod, Marc Overmars, Ed de Goey, Danny Blind
(twice), Jaap Stam, Edwin van der Sar and Michael Mols. Non-Dutch players
have walked off with the award during the last 3 years - Polish keeper
Jerzy Dudek won in 1999 and last year it was the Swiss Johann Vogel who
was the lucky recipient!
|
| Rafael
van der Vaart "Talent of the Year" |
07 May 2002
|
|
The winner of this season's "Young Talent of the Year"
award, in the poll organised every year in Holland by daily
newspaper "De Telegraaf" and "Voetbal International"
magazine, is Ajax's Rafael van der Vaart, who picked up so
many points in the poll before the winter stop that he's come out top even
though he's missed the 2nd half of the season! The young Feyenoorder
Robin van Persie and another Ajacied, Ahmed 'Mido' Hossam, came in 2nd and
3rd respectively, picking up their points after the winter break.
|
| Chivu
stays with Ajax? |
07 May 2002
|
| Ajax's
technical director Leo Beenhakker has been talking to local TV station AT5
about the likelihood of Christian Chivu leaving the ArenA. As yet he's
received no calls from other clubs enquiring about the Romanian
international and now expects that the 21 year-old will stay for at least
another season. The defender joined Ajax in 1999 from Universitatea
Craiova and is under contract till 2006.
|
| Ere
Divisie Championship Koeman's 1st title |
06 May 2002
|
| Ajax's
Ere Divisie title is coach Ronald Koeman's first prize as trainer. His
began his first job as assistant-trainer to the Dutch national team in
July 1997. From July 1998 till December 1999 he was Louis van Gaal's
assistant at Barcelona before being brought back to Holland by Vitesse. He
spent almost two years in Arnhem before taking over from Co Adriaanse when
he was sacked by Ajax last December. During an illustrious career as a
player he turned out for Groningen ), Ajax ), PSV
), Barcelona ) and Feyenoord ). He collected
a whole host of prizes including Championship medals with Ajax
in 1985; PSV in 1987, 1988 and 1989; Barcelona in 1991, 1992, 1993 and
1994. He won the Dutch FA Cup (KNVB Beker) with Ajax in 1986, with PSV in
1988 plus 1989 and the Spanish Cup in 1990 with Barcelona. He also won the
European Cup I in 1988 with PSV and in 1994 with Barcelona, the Spanish
Super Cup in 1991, 1992 and 1995 with Barcelona and, to top it all, the
European Championships with Holland in 1988.
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