Edwin van der Sar leaves Ajax. The general manager draws his conclusions after a dramatic season for the Amsterdam club. The 52-year-old Van der Sar no longer sees a future for himself at Ajax, where last season went wrong on many fronts. “After almost eleven years on the board, I’m exhausted,” says Van der Sar.
The 130-time international became general manager at Ajax in 2016. Previously, he was director of marketing at the club. Under his reign, the first seasons were very successful, culminating in a place in the semi-finals of the Champions League in 2019. Together with Marc Overmars and trainer Erik ten Hag, Van der Sar formed a golden combination. “We have experienced very nice things, but it has also been an incredibly difficult period,” he says on the Ajax website.
After the affair surrounding Overmars, the departure of Ten Hag and the great chaos of last season, criticism of Van der Sar grew. The dismissal of Alfred Schreuder, the lack of clarity surrounding trainer John Heitinga, the long absence of a technical director and the internal struggles made Van der Sar’s departure unavoidable.
Disappointing season
Last weekend, Ajax lost 3-1 to FC Twente. As a result, the team from Amsterdam finished the season third, so that the Champions League will not play next season. This is the worst season for Ajax in the past fourteen years.
Van der Sar did not want to create too much chaos last week, but has now taken the plunge. “I now need to distance myself, relax and do other things. It doesn’t feel right to have to make decisions about the future of this beautiful club in the coming period. Hence my decision to start now. stop,” says Van der Sar.
Pier Eringa, chairman of the Supervisory Board, responds to the departure. “But his decision was firm and we have to respect that. The past season is not representative of the total period of Ajax under his leadership.” Van der Sar’s tasks will be taken over by the current management. Eringa hopes to finalize the new composition of the board soon after 1 August. “Our ambition is to add someone with an Ajax background to the top.”
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