NOS Football•
“Finally!”, thought Assaf Cohen when it emerged on Monday that Ajax had sat down with Jordi Cruijff in its search for a new technical director. The son of, although the commentator at the Israeli TV channel Sport realizes very well that that qualification is not a silver lining.
“I understand that it is said: you should not get Cruijff just because of his name. But he has already done all kinds of things. Such as at Maccabi Tel Aviv. Yes, that is not Ajax. But in Israeli terms it is, if you look at the size of the club and the pressure around it.”
Edwin Winkels, who closely follows football as a NOS correspondent in Spain, also understands the choice for Cruijff. “Because of his name, but also his experience. He also has two years of Barcelona on his resume. And yes, if they always talk about their DNA at Ajax, then it is logical that you will end up with Cruijff one day.”
Jordi recently said that a large number of the players who now play for Barcelona and became champions are his purchases.
Jordi Cruijff, born in Amsterdam in 1974, played football for Ajax in his youth, but returned to Spain when his world-famous father became trainer of FC Barcelona in 1988. There, Cruijff junior developed into a player who made the first signing of the Catalan club, made a transfer to Manchester United and played nine times in the Dutch national team.
Earned marks
However, Ajax does not need a footballer, but a technical director. He has also made his mark in that capacity, Cohen knows. “When he came to Maccabi in 2012, the situation was actually similar to that of Ajax now: a number of years without prizes, players who are not good enough and uncertainty about who makes the decisions.”
Former supervisory board member and Ajax player Theo van Duivenbode has advice for Jordi Cruijff:
Van Duivenbode advises Cruijff not to come to Ajax: ‘It’s more emotion’
Cruijff created peace around the team. He also used his network to bring in trainers. Mostly famous former foreign football players, who saw Maccabi as a springboard to move up. “Paulo Sousa, Óscar García, Shota Arveladze. And also trainers who already had some experience, such as Peter Bosz, who came from Vitesse.”
It turned out to be a successful formula: Maccabi Tel Aviv immediately won the national title three years in a row and also played European football, up to the Champions League. That made the club attractive for trainers and players.
Friends with Laporta
In mid-2021, Cruijff was roped in by Joan Laporta, who had just been elected for a new period as chairman of FC Barcelona. “He was personally close friends with Johan and Jordi also knew him well. He actually couldn’t say ‘no’,” Winkels looks back.
Cruijff, who started as an advisor and became technical director in his second year, also did not end up in a well-balanced position in Catalonia. “Barcelona was, and still is, with Financial Fairplay. So they could spend little. But Deco, who is now ‘td’ at Barcelona, thanked his predecessors last year, including Jordi Cruijff, for the work that had been done.”
It would of course be very nice if someone with the name Cruijff came to the Johan Cruijff Arena and made things a little better.
“Especially when it comes to attracting players,” Winkels continues. “Jordi himself recently said that a large number of the players who now play there and became champions are his purchases. He has attracted Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha, among others.”
After his second year, Cruijff called it quits again. “Because his work was done, he said. That was his explanation: I did what I had to do, my mission was accomplished. He didn’t really like being in the foreground.”
Never again in the Netherlands
He would not be able to avoid that if he were appointed to Amsterdam. And that is not the only reason why Winkels has doubts about Ajax’s chances. “I don’t know Jordi well, but I always had the idea that he would never live and work in the Netherlands again. He actually doesn’t have much interest in the country.”
“But you never know in football, right? After Johan’s death, there are better contacts between Ajax and the family. That was less before. The family was very happy with the naming of the stadium. So there is a bond with Ajax again.”
Cohen is more optimistic. “If he is told that everyone at all levels of the club supports it, then I think he will do it. Ajax is now in such a situation that he sees that there is a lot for him to gain.”
“It would of course also be very nice if someone with the name Cruijff came to the Johan Cruijff Arena and made things a little better. Although that will take a while…”
Parool journalist Jop van Kempen discussed the situation surrounding Ajax and Jordi Cruijff in Studio Voetbal:
Jordi Cruijff joining Ajax? ‘Isn’t it a burning house that you buy?’
