The Dutch national team of the 1974 World Cup is held to an almost mythical status due to their revolutionary style of play, later dubbed ‘Total Football’. What many people fail to remember is that the Netherlands run to the final in 1974 was the culmination of a period of dominance in all competitions for domestic outfit AFC Ajax. In the four years preceding the 1974 World Cup, every Champions League trophy (then known as the European Cup) was won by a Dutch team, once by Feyenoord in the 1969-70 season and then by Ajax in the next three seasons.
Ajax would add to their Champions League tally again in 1994-95, led by six goals from Jari Litmanen and lifted over AC Milan in the final via a late strike from Patrick Kluivert. Ajax’s haul of four Champions League trophies is bettered by only Real Madrid, AC Milan, Liverpool, Bayern Munich and Barcelona, which begs the question, why are Ajax continually dismissed in the argument for Europe’s elite sides?
This may be in part due to Ajax’s reputation as almost being a feeder team for other European powerhouses, I believe that this reputation is rather unflattering when you consider Ajax’s ability to maintain a respectable level of quality in their side and consistently qualify for European competitions. This is largely due to the incredible string of players nurtured under Ajax’s youth system. Names such as Cruyff, van Basten, Bergkamp, Kluivert, van der Sar, Seedorf and Sneijder speak for themselves but even the past decade has seen such names as Eriksen, van de Beek, de Jong and de Ligt make their mark and court interest from other sides across Europe.
Unfortunately, it seems as if another exodus is in the cards for Ajax this summer as Hakim Ziyech has already secured a move to Chelsea and is encouraging Frank Lampard to also consider signing Ajax’s talented 23-year old goalkeeper Andre Onana. Donny van de Beek also seems set to sign for either Real Madrid or Manchester United. This would only add to the losses of Frenkie de Jong, Kasper Dolberg and Matthijs de Ligt that occurred last summer. Despite the consistent poaching of many of their best players and prospects, Ajax are still the most successful team in the Netherlands, winning the Eredivisie 26 times.
I’m sure that many fans would laugh at the idea of Ajax’s domestic dominance being used as an argument that they deserve more respect amongst Europe’s elite. I would argue that this is simply due to the fact that the Eredivisie in many fans’ eyes, doesn’t hold the same glamour and appeal of many of the other leagues in Europe. The Premier League is recognised as the best league in world football, Ligue 1 is the stomping grounds of financial powerhouses PSG, Serie A has the historic Milan rivalry and the unshakeable success of Juventus (bolstered by the legions of fans that will follow Juventus’ performances simply because of Cristiano Ronaldo), La Liga has El Clasico and the Bundesliga has the continued dominance of Bayern Munich.
The Eredivisie as a whole, doesn’t have many stars that will dominate media attention like Europe’s other big five leagues. However, Ajax are a shining example of exceptional team performance and management throughout a club, quietly succeeding over teams that only seem to flourish due to their ability to attract already-developed stars due to financial or geographical appeal.
The Inbound Observer 