Technical manager Hamstra to leave Ajax effective immediately

Gerry Hamstra has left as Ajax’s technical manager effective immediately. The Amsterdam club reached an agreement on Monday to dissolve the 52-year-old Groninger’s contract, which runs until the summer of 2024.

Hamstra had been with Ajax since April 2021. Initially, he worked in a supporting role under director of soccer affairs Marc Overmars. After Overmars’ departure due to cross-border behavior in February 2022, Hamstra became responsible for buying and selling policy together with Klaas-Jan Huntelaar.

Ajax experienced a busy transfer summer, in which half a dozen potential base players left. Most of the replacements Hamstra and Huntelaar brought in (see box below) performed disappointingly at Ajax.

Ajax is experiencing a bad season, in which it was eliminated in the Champions League already in the group stage and suffered the biggest European defeat in club history (1-6 against Napoli). Then, in the Europa League intermediate round, Union Berlin proved too strong.

Sunday’s 0-0 draw against Go Ahead Eagles put prolongation of the national title further out of sight. They are eight points behind leaders Feyenoord with seven games to play.

The KNVB Cup is the only prize Ajax still has a chance of winning. Wednesday’s semi-final against Feyenoord is scheduled at De Kuip.

Because of poor results, trainer Alfred Schreuder was fired earlier. Ajax wants to appoint a new technical manager. “We have indicated to Gerry that we are going to organize things differently. We want to thank him for his efforts,” said general manager Edwin van der Sar.

Hamstra himself did not see it fit to return to a support role. “It is my aspiration to be technical director and with this be ultimately responsible and that option is not there at Ajax. That is the reason for me to decide to leave earlier,” he said in a statement from Ajax

For Hamstra’s position, Ajax initially had Englishman Julian Ward in mind. But Liverpool’s technical director could not reach an agreement with the Amsterdam club, reported The Telegraph late last week.

After Ward dropped out, Ajax reportedly moved on to Sven Mislintat. The 50-year-old German was technical director at VfB Stuttgart until last fall and previously worked as a scout at Arsenal and Borussia Dortmund.