A small task awaits Jordan Henderson at Ajax. The England midfielder and former Liverpool captain has to be the leader and inspiration of a team that is mostly young, unstable and heavily criticized.
This is a team that was eliminated from the Dutch Cup less than a month ago by rivals USV Hercules, who do not even play at the highest amateur level. Ajax, by far the richest club in the Netherlands and having enjoyed success in the Champions League between 2018 and 2022, fell to the bottom of the table in late October and are now in fifth place, a top-three club that entitles them to be one of Europe’s elite teams. It is nine points behind the table. football next season.
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Fans, press and former players such as Rafael van der Vaart, Wesley Sneijder and Marco van Basten were brutal in their criticism. For them, the “bad” way Ajax are playing is incomprehensible, especially the state of the midfield and defence. However, it is also true that the team has to play a play-off match against Norway’s Bodø/Glimt team next month in order to continue in the Europa Conference League; Of the 10 obscure players who arrived last summer, only one is thought to be available: goalkeeper Diant Ramaj.
Criticism also comes from within. “The main reasons for the decline are the lack of vision and leadership,” the experienced Remko Pasveer, Ajax’s reserve goalkeeper, said in an explosive interview with Amsterdam newspaper Het Parool. “Most of the new arrivals do not have the Champions League level that Ajax aspire to. And they do not understand the club.”
Does Henderson understand this complex club, where former manager Louis van Gaal has returned as a consultant, former captain Danny Blind has returned as a member of the supervisory board and former player John van ‘t Schip has been appointed as interim coach? but which one longs for a full-fledged board of directors? Does the 33-year-old football player still have Champions League quality?
This probably isn’t even the most important thing. The versatile midfielder has a wealth of experience and has been praised for his work ethic and leadership. This is what Ajax need most after parting ways with talismans Daley Blind (a year ago) and Dusan Tadic (last summer).
“Two years ago, the gym was always busy even after training,” says Pasveer. “Players like Dusan Tadic, Davy Klaassen, Lisandro Martínez, Daley Blind, Antony or Sébastien Haller always wanted to become better and stronger, even in their free time… I see less commitment among the current generation of players and this worries me.”
The arrival of Henderson filled the fans with hope and they were cheered by the words of Liverpool assistant coach Pepijn Lijnders, whom Henderson consulted regarding Ajax. Lijnders told Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant: “He’s a complete midfielder, full of character. He often corrects his fellow players and coaches so there’s never a moment when no one can focus. He’s been our captain all these years; that’s everything.” “He keeps the team on the bench and can be the coach’s right hand.”
What fuels the enthusiasm is the sense of disbelief that the deal is happening. Dutch clubs these days are often not successful in attracting well-paid foreign players with such a proven track record. PSV Eindhoven’s signing of German World Cup champion Mario Götze in 2020 is a rare modern example.
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At the back of the store at the Johan Cruyff Arena, shirts with Henderson’s name are flying across the counters. Ajax fans have already given him a nickname (“Henny”), and a prankster in Amsterdam crossed out the letter “a” on a sign in Amsterdam’s Jordaan district, making it read Jordan.
“His arrival means a huge increase in the quality of our selection,” says Van ‘t Schip, but Henderson will not be able to face RKC Waalwijk on Sunday while he awaits his practice permit. “A football player of this level is important for many young players both on and off the field,” he said.
The fact that Henderson is 33 years old and has spent the last six months in a mediocre Saudi league raises some doubts in the Netherlands about whether this match will be a match of gold. But there is almost no talk about Henderson, who has positioned himself as a strong advocate for the LGBTQ+ community in England, choosing ethically to play in a country where homosexuality is banned.
Thijs Smeenk, a sports journalist and board member of the John Blankenstein Foundation, which supports gay and lesbian rights, says he is happy about Henderson’s arrival. “Gay acceptance in the Netherlands, including within football environments, is going backwards rather than forwards. It’s nice to welcome a player who dares to speak out for gay acceptance. We don’t get enough of that on our football pitches. I assume Henderson still advocates this idea.”