Ajax hopes to close the gap with places four and three in the competition after the winter break. “That is a goal, but that is a lot to ask for in the current situation,” says coach John van ‘t Schip on the club website. Ajax is currently fifth in the Eredivisie, 8 points behind AZ.
The Amsterdam team is currently at a training camp in Jerez de la Frontera, Spain. They do a lot of physical training there, but the game system is also examined. “There is still a lot of work to be done,” says Van ‘t Schip. “We have a number of weeks with only one match in the coming period. This means that we can do more during the week, which I have not been able to do since I started. This makes it possible to perfect the game system and hone it better. “
Much is still unclear at Ajax about transfers during the winter break. Van ‘t Schip hopes for reinforcements and is especially tight in midfield. Branco van den Boomen, Sivert Mannsverk and Silvano Vos are missing, for example. “It’s January and we have to wait and see if anything else is added. That usually happens at the end, but as a trainer you prefer to have it as soon as possible. I know what I have started and if no reinforcements arrive, we will leave.” continue with the group we have.”
Cup elimination
Ajax resumes the season next Sunday against Go Ahead Eagles. The Amsterdam team’s last match was against the amateurs of Hercules in the cup, in which they were surprisingly eliminated. Van ‘t Schip listened on the radio from Australia because he was there for his son’s wedding. “The explanation is clear: we have to win there. And then you can start looking for causes, but it happened and that is absolutely not good. We take it with us, but have to make a restart here.”