34-year-old Dusan Tadic says goodbye to Ajax after five seasons. That reports the club Friday. Tadic would not have agreed with the restrained transfer policy of the team from Amsterdam – Ajax has not yet attracted any absolute reinforcements after the last bad season. The Ajax captain still had a one-year contract, but that has now been dissolved.
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With the departure of Tadic from Ajax, an era comes to an end. The Serbian, together with Daley Blind who has already left, symbolized a change in Ajax’s policy: attracting experienced players for high amounts in order to reconnect with the European top. That soon worked. Ajax reached the semi-finals of the Champions League in the 2018/19 season by eliminating Real Madrid and Juventus, among others. The team from Amsterdam also became national champions in that season and the club won the KNVB Cup. That year, Tadic scored no less than 38 goals in all competitions.
Tadic, who became captain after the departure of Matthijs de Ligt in 2019, would also remain invaluable to Ajax in the following years. In his five years with the club, he scored 105 goals in 241 games and provided 112 assists. It resulted in a total of three national titles and two cup wins for the team from Amsterdam. In addition, he was an example for young players with his discipline and perseverance. Top fit as he was, he was hardly injured in five seasons.
Criticism
Criticism of Tadic was also never far away. With his theatrical behavior during matches, he aroused irritation among opponents and the public. He also compromised with moral issues. Tadic only wore a captain’s armband in the colors of the Ukrainian flag once, fellow captains did so several times. In addition, when other Eredivisie captains played with a rainbow band, Tadic opted for a less striking gesture.
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Last season, Tadic was also criticized for his game for the first time. The call for a place on the bench became louder, despite the fact that he was again able to provide excellent figures (11 goals and 18 assists). Tadic remained a basic player under trainers Alfred Schreuder and John Heitinga. He himself showed his dissatisfaction on several occasions about the insufficient quality of the Ajax selection in his opinion.
Tadic discussed this with the new technical director Sven Mislintat in recent days, which ultimately resulted in his departure. According to Mislintat, “the door will remain open” for Tadic in the future for a position as a trainer. Tadic also does not speak about a final goodbye in a short response. “I will forever remain an Ajax player and hope to return to Amsterdam in the near future in a different role, as a trainer.”