The sporting director of Ajax has voiced his opinion on the way in which Man United took away their star players in the summer transfer window.
As part of a mass exodus from the Amsterdam side, winger Antony and centre-back Lisandro Martinez joined the Red Devils.
The Martinez signing was relatively straightforward; United agreed to a £57 million fee, after which they sorted personal terms quickly. Martinez marked the start of Man United’s spending spree this summer, which went over £200 million.
In contrast, Antony’s move came right at the end of the transfer window. Rumours linked Man United to the Ajax man throughout the summer. However, a deal took a lot of negotiation.
Earlier in August, the Eredivisie champs rejected a £68 million bid from United for their winger. Then, on 26 August, Ajax turned down an improved offer of £76 million.
Following this, the player voiced his concern over his potential transfer, asking Ajax to allow him to leave. On 30 August, Antony got his wish, as Ajax agreed on an £85 million fee for him with Man United. He then officially joined on deadline day.
Both of the former Ajax stars have proved popular signings thus far. Martinez won the club’s player of the month award for August after some strong defensive displays to start 2022/23. Meanwhile, Antony hit the ground running with a debut goal in their 3-1 against Arsenal.
All this is a very bitter pill to swallow for Ajax. Their sporting director, Gerry Hamstra, was particularly displeased at the sale of his players.
Ajax director fumes at Man United business
Speaking to Dutch outlet De Telegraaf, the Ajax official expressed his frustration at the manner in which Man United swooped for their stars.
“Manchester United’s timing was so bad,” fumed Hamstra, quoted via Daily Mail. “The last few days [of the window] became even more hectic after Ajax had already gone through a major rebuild of the squad following the departure of lots of top-class players.
“It was so difficult to leave our manager with such a void. We all think we lost too many first-team players who always start. There were totally different expectations for the summer.
“We wanted to keep the group together as much as possible to be able to perform well in the Champions League and to carry on being successful. That’s what we talked about with Alfred [Schreuder, Ajax manager].
“Of course, we knew there were a few snags,” the Ajax director continued. “But no one had foreseen that our players would be bought for such huge sums of money.”
Speaking specifically about Antony, Hamstra admitted that they did not want to lose the winger.
“I understand Schreuder’s anger, very much so. I have been a manager myself, so I know how annoying it is when your best player leaves at the last minute. We did not want this, we wanted to keep Antony.”
In response to their departures, Ajax brought in several fresh faces to bulk up their squad.
Ajax’s summer signings
The Dutch giants bolstered their attacking options with moves for Spurs winger Steven Bergwijn and a permanent deal for forward Brian Brobbey. Brobbey had spent part of last season at the Johan Cruyff Arena on loan.
Additionally, Ajax snapped up Argentinian winger Lucas Ocampos in a deadline-day loan deal to cover Antony’s departure.
Elsewhere, Calvin Bassey and Ahmetcan Kaplan joined from Rangers and Trabzonspor, respectively, to add defensive depth. Amongst other squad signings, left-back Owen Wijndal’s arrival covers for Nicolas Tagliafico’s exit.
The squad overhaul has not yet hurt results for the reigning Dutch champions. They have taken five wins from five in the Eredivisie, and currently sit top of the league.
Featured Image Credit: Getty
