Ajax parted ways with manager Alfred Schreuder following the Dutch champions’ 1-1 draw with Volendam on Thursday; the team’s seventh consecutive league game without a win.
The draw sees Ajax slip 18 points behind Eredivisie leaders Feyenoord, with the fifth-placed side looking increasingly less likely to pull off the turnaround they need in order to revive their title hopes.
Schreuder arrived at Ajax following the departure of previous head coach Erik ten Hag, who parted ways with the Amsterdam-based club in pursuit of the managerial position at Premier League team Manchester United.
“This is a painful decision, but it’s necessary,” Ajax chief executive Edwin van der Sar commented in a statement. “Regardless of the good start to the season, we lost a lot of unnecessary points. The football itself was precarious too.”
While Ajax managed to get their season off to a strong start, the team’s performances soon started to slide, with their last league winning coming against RKC Waalwijk on October 23. Van der Sar further explained that while the club decided to give Schreuder an opportunity to use the 2022 World Cup break as well as the winter break to turn things around, it soon became evident that he was incapable of doing so.
