If we all accept we are only a top 6/7 club as we stand and stick to a genuine 3 year plan and not EXPECT success then he is the perfect manager in my opinion
De Boer out.Not sure if this has been posted before, but De Boer according to Wikipedia, has been managing us since 2013:
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Wigan vs Manchester City?De Boer has a huge amount going for him and is appealing to me. However I'd be lying if I were to say the manner of Ajax's defeats to Salzburg in the Europa and more pertinently Pec Zwolle in the cup final don't greatly concern me. Salzburg at least are a good team but Zwolle? Can't recall another major club being so comprehensively beaten in a cup final by such an apparently inferior opponent.
That said I didn't see these games so there may have been more to it. Perhaps someone else could add context?
Not entirely convinced by FDB
Very hard to judge players or managers on their successes in the Eredivisie. His Ajax side were dismantled 6-1 on aggregate by Red Bull Salzburg, and he just lost the Dutch cup final to PEC Zwolle, 5-1. Of course these may just be anomalies in another title winning season for Ajax, but they are little niggles on his CV. He knows Eriksen and Vertonghen of course, and he is well-schooled in the Ajax philosophy which is always a big plus point.
But to jump from that league to ours, as a manager, is quite a leap. You could argue AVB outperformed him in a slightly stronger league in Portugal, as well as winning the Europa League at a canter, albeit with a stronger squad.
I'd probably be quite happy if we did appoint him, but I just have a few reservations.
Forgive me. By comprehensively beaten I mean absolutely mauled 5-1. A 1-0 loss to Wigan is not in the same category.Wigan vs Manchester City?
I think if LvG is done deal at Utd then De Boer will be seriously considered by Levy, something is telling me this guy will be our next Coach #hunch
Forgive me. By comprehensively beaten I mean absolutely mauled 5-1. A 1-0 loss to Wigan is not in the same category.
Their goal difference +52, ours...... +2. Doesn't matter what your defence is like if you're going to score two or three more than you let in.
I think if LvG is done deal at Utd then De Boer will be seriously considered by Levy, something is telling me this guy will be our next Coach #hunch
1x spam
You express some concerns that are legitimate, and others that are not so valid.
The Salzburg blowout was a total fluke, and anyone who's followed Ajax for the last 3 years (on top of being familiar with Salzburg) knows that.
The drubbing by Zwolle in Rotterdam was an entirely different "can of worms". The game was stalled for over 30 minutes in the very beginning after Ajax opened the score (due to some knuckle-dragging idiots throwing rocket flares almost directly at the players near the PEC 18-yd box). In addition to disruptions, injuries (absence of Veltman was huge), and the Zwolle fan support being insanely great, the whole match was a weird cluster-fuck. Throw in the fact (that after the 30 minute delay) Thomas began to attack like a man possessed, and you will realize "the stars aligned perfectly" for PEC Zwolle that day. The stage was set for them to become the "Cinderella story" of the year. In the history of the club, they've never won the Dutch Royal (KNVB) Cup until this year's final vs Ajax (who incidentally won this trophy a total of 18 times).
That Portuguese Primeira Liga is slightly stronger than the Dutch Eredivisie is subject to argument.
While the top 3 perennial giants of Portugal (Porto, Benfica, & Sporting) are indeed a bit stronger than their respective counterparts in Holland (Ajax, PSV, & Feyenoord), the rest of the Eredivisie is (pound-for-pound) slightly more competitive than the remaining Primeira Liga clubs (Braga perhaps being the only exception to that rule).
Considering the argument above, plus the fact that AVB's Porto squad was not just stronger (but significantly stronger) than FDB's Ajax, I'd venture to say it's not plausible that AVB outperformed FDB under those circumstances.
Finally, to those who're concerned that FDB's similarities to AVB will have a negative impact, I'd say FDB in many ways is more flexible than AVB. Not just tactically, but also in his willingness to experiment and to adapt new ways of doing things.
Not to mention FDB's vast experience as a footballer (which AVB lacked) that makes him a more appealing candidate to players in general.
COYS
Forgive me. By comprehensively beaten I mean absolutely mauled 5-1. A 1-0 loss to Wigan is not in the same category.
is fdb another possession clone or does he have more strings to his bow? i haven't watched ajax in great detail for a while so i don't know.
Great post
You express some concerns that are legitimate, and others that are not so valid.
The Salzburg blowout was a total fluke, and anyone who's followed Ajax for the last 3 years (on top of being familiar with Salzburg) knows that.
COYS