Ajax talking to John Heitinga to return as coach
Ajax is negotiating with John Heitinga. The Amsterdam club is looking for a new head coach to replace Francesco Farioli. Liverpool has given Heitinga permission to talk to the Amsterdam club, transfer guru Fabrizio Romano told NOS. According to the Telegraaf, Ajax is eyeing Heitinga and Marcel Keizer to form a coaching duo with Heitinga at the head.
Heitinga (41) was assistant to coach Arne Slot at Liverpool last season, and the duo convincingly became national champions with the club earlier this month. According to transfer guru Romano, Liverpool expects Heitinga to take the Ajax deal. “Liverpool is already looking for a replacement for the assistant coach.”
Heitinga is very familiar with Ajax. He formerly played for the Amsterdam club, was a youth coach, coached Jong Ajax, and briefly coached the first team in 2023. He was appointed at the end of January 2023 after the dismissal of Alfred Schreuder. Under his leadership, Ajax finished third in the Eredivisie, losing the cup final against PSV on penalties. At the end of that season, Ajax replaced Heitinga with Maurice Steijn.
Keizer (56) has also coached at Ajax in the past. He succeeded Peter Bosz in 2017, but was at the helm for only six months. Keizer went through a turbulent period at the club when Abdelhak Nouri suffered cardiac arrest on the field during the preparation for the season.
The Heitinga-Keizer duo was not Ajax’s first choice. Director Alex Kroes first approached Erik ten Hag, but the former Ajax and Manchester United coach signed a contract with Bayer Leverkusen this week.
