Ajax correct damning article about Jordi Cruyff: 'It is not true'

Menno Geelen does not recognise the portrayal of Jordi Cruijff as a technical director who mainly follows his own course at Ajax. The chief executive firmly rejects that image in an interview with De Telegraaf and instead describes Cruijff as a team player.

That amounts to an indirect response from Geelen to a lengthy article Het Parool published at the start of July about Cruijff's way of working. The piece portrayed the technical director as a lone operator who had largely cut himself off from the existing organisation and was working mainly with his own trusted allies. Ten current and former club employees told the newspaper they had been sidelined.

Geelen says that does not match what he sees on a daily basis. "I do not recognise that portrayal," he says. "Jordi is actually a team player. I have spoken to him virtually every day over the past few months, about all sorts of matters."

He stresses that Cruijff works closely with various people inside Ajax. "Jordi also consults a lot with our financial director, Shashi Baboeram Panday. And he involves Daniel de Ridder and Siem de Jong, who are developing as technical managers."

Geelen also says Cruijff is in frequent contact with the coaching staff and the supervisory board. "Jordi also bounces ideas around a lot with the coach, other members of the staff, and the football commissioner," Geelen said, pushing back on the idea that Cruijff mainly works on his own.

Elsewhere, the club's many new signings this summer have prompted comparisons with Sven Mislintat, who as technical director brought 12 players to Amsterdam in 2023, almost all of whom turned out to be failures. Geelen does not think that comparison holds up. "The Mislintat period was evaluated extensively, including externally. One of the findings was that the football axis within the organisation was not in order. That has been addressed."

He also says the transfer process has changed since then. "The entire transfer process was also reviewed and improved. During the Mislintat period, I may have had a different responsibility as commercial director, but I still felt responsible."