Kieft defends much-maligned Ajax player: ‘In hindsight, simply a great player’
Wim Kieft sees a painful contrast between Ajax and Feyenoord. The former striker believes the Rotterdam club currently play the most attractive football in the Netherlands, while the enthusiasm in Amsterdam after a promising start to the season has vanished. In his column for De Telegraaf, Kieft tears into the football played by Michel Sanchez's side.
At Ajax, the mood was particularly positive at the start of the season. Technical director Jordi Cruyff brought several big names to Amsterdam, and results in the Conference League qualifying rounds gave fans further cause for optimism. Kieft liked the football on show, too, but little of that enthusiasm remains.
Last Thursday's match marked the low point of the team's recent decline for Kieft. "Against Hajduk Split, Michel Sanchez's side fell well below the minimum acceptable standard," he concludes. The former international saw a team lacking cohesion and depth, with the tempo far too slow.
In attack, Ajax made little impression on Kieft either, and their lack of chances visibly irritated him. "The match kicked off at 6.45 in the evening, but you could easily have fallen asleep watching it," he writes. The Amsterdam side took an exceptionally long time to put together anything resembling a decent attack, according to the former striker.
Sofyan Amrabat's disappointing performances have also made Kieft reconsider his view of former Ajax captain Jordan Henderson. The English midfielder faced constant heavy criticism during his time in Amsterdam, but Kieft believes his value is becoming increasingly clear. "He supposedly wasn't much good, but when you see Amrabat wandering around midfield looking lost, Henderson looks better and better with every match."
On Henderson, Kieft goes further: "In hindsight, he turns out to have been a great player for Ajax," says the former international. He also points to what Henderson has shown at Brentford and now Chelsea since leaving Amsterdam.
Ajax's other summer signings leave Kieft cold, too. He believes Julian Brandt was hailed too quickly and the excitement around Tolu Arokodare was overblown. The striker is physically strong and dangerous in the air, according to Kieft, but falls short with the ball at his feet. Kieft believes that explains why Míchel regularly preferred Kasper Dolberg. "That was no coincidence," says Kieft.
