Ajax coach Míchel Sánchez: 'He can become the new Virgil van Dijk'

Míchel Sánchez is delighted with Aaron Bouwman's progress. After the 0-4 win over Telstar, the Ajax coach even compared the young centre-back to Virgil van Dijk.

Bouwman played the full match in central defence for the Amsterdam club on Sunday and helped his side keep a clean sheet in Velsen-Zuid. Ajax struggled against Telstar, especially before the break, but after half-time they still pulled away to a comfortable victory.

"Bouwman played very well in my view," Míchel said at the post-match press conference. At the same time, the Spanish coach still sees plenty of room for improvement in the defender.

"He still needs to improve in duels, with second balls and in some situations in his body position," Míchel explained. "But he has an enormous amount of talent and I expect him to keep developing, keep learning and keep working hard."

Then came a striking comparison. "In my view, he can become the new Van Dijk, if you look at his style of play," said the Ajax coach.

At the press conference, Míchel was also reminded that Bouwman has never lost a match in which he has played for Ajax. "Yes, I know that. But that is not only down to Aaron, it is to the credit of the whole team," he replied.

He also refused to put the clean sheet against Telstar entirely down to his centre-back. "Today we kept a clean sheet, but in other matches we have also conceded goals. That is never down to one player, it is always about the team."