Jordi Cruijff’s Ajax transfer strategy draws warning over long-term risk

Jordi Cruijff’s transfer policy at Ajax has come under scrutiny, with columnist Valentijn Driessen warning that the club’s emphasis on immediate success carries significant financial and sporting risks. As relayed by FCUpdate, Driessen believes the approach could create major problems if Ajax do not achieve their objectives.

Cruijff has built a more experienced squad in an attempt to restore Ajax as title contenders. FCUpdate names Sofyan Amrabat, Marcos Leonardo, Caio Henrique and Viktor Tsygankov among the experienced and apparently expensive players recruited during the summer.

Driessen also disputes the idea that free transfers and loan deals necessarily represent inexpensive business. He points to signing fees and high salaries as potential costs, arguing that Cruijff’s strategy is geared almost entirely towards short-term results. The columnist describes the policy as a risky experiment and says its consequences could eventually bring Ajax “to the brink of the abyss” if success does not materialise.

The criticism extends to Ajax’s squad-building model. Driessen contrasts the current strategy with previous successful sides whose core, he says, combined experienced players connected to the club, leading academy prospects and a limited number of external additions. He argues that Jordi Cruijff has moved away from the long-term vision advocated by his father Johan, while doing so with the approval of the supervisory board and football commissioner Edo Ophof.