Ajax fans go completely wild within 15 minutes: 'Officially a gigantic flop'

Marcos Leonardo drew the ire of a large section of the Ajax support inside 10 minutes on Thursday evening. Against FC Sion, the striker was handed two excellent chances to put the Amsterdam side ahead, but failed to connect properly with the ball on either occasion.

Ajax's first huge chance came as early as the sixth minute. After some fumbling in the FC Sion defence, Julian Brandt laid the ball on a plate for Leonardo, but the forward completely swung over it and let a golden chance for 0-1 go begging.

Three minutes later, Leonardo got it wrong again. Ajax put together another good attack, but before the striker could make full contact with the ball, he slipped, meaning his second attempt posed hardly any danger either. In previous matches for Ajax, Leonardo had already gone through exactly the same thing several times.

That immediately sparked a flood of critical reactions on, for example, Ajax Showtime. "Until now, as far as Leonardo is concerned, I was in the 'give him time' camp, but that gets harder with every action," one supporter writes, while another concludes: "He is turning into a gigantic flop."

Others are also starting to openly doubt Leonardo's qualities. "I think we got the wrong Leonardo," one mocked, while another visitor responded: "What kind of striker have we signed? This can't be right, surely?" Yet another kept it short: "Leonardo is officially a flop."

Criticism is also being fuelled by the hefty fee Ajax paid for Leonardo this summer. The Amsterdam side signed the 23-year-old Brazilian from Saudi club Al-Hilal in July for a transfer fee of just under €20 million and tied him down to a five-year deal. "Still got the receipt for Leo?" one supporter asked cynically, while another wondered: "Does he even have studs under his boots?"

Some supporters are now drawing comparisons with previous disappointing Ajax signings. "Leonardo is our Iván Gabrich ’26," one fan wrote, after which another immediately agreed: "Exactly who I was thinking of: Gabrich." The former Argentine striker, who arrived in Amsterdam in 1996 and failed to score in 10 league matches, is known as one of the biggest flops in Ajax's club history.

One cynical remark read: "Okay, now I'm really starting to wonder whether Jordi picked that Leonardo up from a korfball court."