John Heitinga and Marcel Keizer reach agreement with Ajax regarding manager position
John Heitinga and Marcel Keizer have reached an agreement to become the new managers of Ajax, De Telegraaf has reported. Both men have managed Ajax in the past. They will follow the Italian manager Francesco Farioli, who left the club a few weeks ago. The duo will sign a contract until 2027.
Heitinga played 152 games for Ajax as a player from 2001 to 2008 before playing two more games in a short return to the club in the 2015-16 season. Heitinga left the club for Atletico Madrid in 2008.
He began his coaching career at Ajax in 2017. He was eventually made the manager of Jong Ajax, which plays in the Dutch second division, in 2021. He was appointed as the interim manager of the first team in 2023 after Alfred Schreuder had been sacked.
Ajax finished in third place under Heitinga’s leadership and lost the KNVB Cup final to PSV on penalties, before the club decided against keeping him in the position. His next two roles came as assistant manager at West Ham United and Liverpool, where he worked under Dutch manager Arne Slot last season. Liverpool were crowned champions in the English Premier League a few weeks ago while Heitinga was assistant.
Marcel Keizer was also promoted from his role as Jong Ajax manager to manager of the first team. The 56-year-old was appointed as manager ahead of the 2017-18 season, replacing the current PSV manager, Peter Bosz, who was departing to join Borussia Dortmund in Germany.
Ajax decided to sack Keizer on December 21, 2017, with the club five points behind the league leaders PSV in second place. The firing came after his team had lost a cup match to FC Twente on penalties. Keizer went on to manage Abu Dhabi side Al Jazira on two occasions, Sporting CP, and Al Shabab.
Ajax’s new coaching duo will face a major challenge, with fans having to get over an incredibly poor end of the season, which saw the side blow a nine-point lead at the top of the Eredivisie table. However, the second-place finish was enough for qualification to the main stage of the UEFA Champions League.
There have been reports linking important players with a move away from Amsterdam. Players like Jordan Henderson, Kenneth Taylor, Josip Sutalo, and Jorrel Hato may all be set to leave the club.
Ajax can only invest 40 percent of its transfer income and Champions League revenue in new players, said the club’s technical director, Alex Kroes. This is due to Ajax’s current financial situation.
Ajax spent the past week searching for a successor to the men’s team manager, Francesco Farioli. The Italian had a difference of opinion with the club’s executives and thus saw insufficient opportunities to make Ajax much more successful in the short term.
After Farioli voiced his discontent, and then his inevitable departure, Ajax discussed the possibility of bringing back Erik ten Hag. But that manager preferred to continue his time outside of the Netherlands, signing a deal with Bayer Leverkusen last week.
Ajax is expected to confirm the appointment of Heitinga and Keizer once all contracts have been drawn up and concluded.
