After a dismal start to the season, where they have lost their last four Eredivisie matches and currently sit in the relegation zone, Ajax made the decision to sack their manager, Maurice Steijn, after only four months in charge. In the midst of what could be described as a crisis, the Dutch giants and record Eredivisie champions have put assistant manager Hedwiges Maduro in charge for the upcoming fixtures as they begin the search for a new manager.
Some names have already begun to be linked, with one being current Manchester United assistant manager Mitchell van der Gaag. However, reports have also said it is unlikely he would depart Manchester to return to Amsterdam. Another one has been former Ajax player John van’t Schip, who reportedly said Ajax approached him to be interim manager until the end of the season.
However, we will be looking at more long-term solutions for Ajax and who we feel would be the best fit tactically and stylistically for the style of football that Ajax love to play and are known for across world football. This article will highlight the three that stand out the most as potential candidates, with this tactical analysis looking more along the lines of a scout report on the different managers.
Pascal Jansen, 50 years old, AZ Alkmaar
When looking at the options inside of the Netherlands for names of who could take over the permanent head coaching role at Ajax, there actually aren’t many realistic options that stand out. While Peter Bosz is a former Ajax manager, the Dutchman has kicked on with PSV Eindhoven this season, guiding the club to top of the Eredivisie with only three goals conceded in the first nine domestic league matches.
Arne Slot is also an interesting name, though his loyalty to Feyenoord by spurning the advances of Tottenham Hotspur and signing a new contract this summer, and also taking into account the heated rivalry between the two sides, makes this a non-starter.
This leaves Pascal Jansen, with the 50-year-old Dutchman quietly turning AZ Alkmaar into one of the best teams in the Eredivisie in recent seasons. Since becoming head coach of AZ in December 2020, they have been one of the most consistently performing sides in the Dutch top flight, with league finishes of 3rd, 5th, and 4th in the past three seasons. He has also guided them into Europe, notably bringing the club to the semi-finals of last season’s Europa Conference League before losing to eventual winners West Ham United.
Taking a deeper look at AZ this season, their four goals conceded is the second-fewest, while 25 goals scored is 3rd most, with them currently sitting 2nd in the Eredivisie table. When thinking of Ajax, the main things that come to mind is possession-based football with plenty of attacking impetus. Considering Jansen at AZ, the Dutch side has averaged 52.2% possession this season, slightly behind Ajax’s number of 60.4%. However, these possession numbers tend to be somewhat misleading, with Ajax and AZ’s average passes per 90 minutes identical. The attacking impetus is also prevalent in Pascal Jansen’s side, with AZ Alkmaar having one of the highest numbers of shots this season, with 42.3% of them being on target, the best return of any of the top Eredivisie sides.
The data viz graphic above highlights the shots taken by AZ Alkmaar this season and the general areas on the pitch where they look to take these shots. As we can see, most of the goals have been scored from inside the penalty box, though they also tend to take shots from outside the area if the space opens up for them. AZ’s 222 touches inside the penalty area this season is 3rd most in the Eredivisie, with a lot of ball progression into the penalty area coming from the dribbling ability of their wide midfielders in Jansen’s preferred 4-2-3-1 formation, though it also looks like a 4-3-3 at times.
Both wide midfielders, 20-year-old Swede Mayckel Lahdo and 20-year-old Dutchman Myron van Brederode have accounted for a total of 74 1v1 and dribbling opportunities, while Greek forward Vangelis Pavlidis has also added to that total. To summarise, Pascal Jansen wants his side to play forward-thinking attacking football, with the wide players looking to penetrate the penalty area and find teammates in better goalscoring areas between the posts.
The data viz graphic above highlights the penetrating carries from AZ this season, with another one of Jansen’s tactical points being on utilising the wide channels to penetrate and get behind opposition full-backs and defences. This use of wide play and deep completions is something that Ajax did tremendously well during Erik ten Hag’s last season in charge during the 2021/22 title-winning campaign, with Ajax leading the Eredivisie in both of these metrics.
For us, the style of play that Pascal Jansen has employed at AZ Alkmaar, as well as the continuous improvement of the side over the past few seasons and the development of young players, makes him one of our top coaches who should be in the running to succeed Maurice Steijn at Ajax.
Christian Ilzer, 46 years old, SK Sturm Graz
Another name who we think should be in the running for the Ajax job is Christian Ilzer. The 46-year-old Sturm Graz head coach has had immense success with the Austrian side since being appointed in the summer of 2020, with them being one of the sides able to push RB Salzburg close in the recent seasons. Sturm Graz have been the closest finishers to Salzburg in the previous two Austrian Bundesliga seasons, with the gap getting smaller each time. Looking to this present season, Sturm Graz actually sit top, holding a four-point lead over Salzburg and being unbeaten in their first 11 domestic league matches.
One of the trademarks of Christian Ilzer’s tactics at Sturm Graz is the aggressive counterpressing system the Austrian has deployed with his side. When the Austrian side turn possession over in the middle third or attacking third of the pitch, it is common to frequently see the Sturm Graz attackers look to put immediate pressure on the opposition players in possession, with the goal to regain possession as quickly as possible.
The graphic above shows the pressing intensity displayed by Sturm Graz through all competitions this season. As it is able to illustrate, while the Austrian side has committed 180 high regains, the one that stands out is the 298 counterpressing recoveries, with Sturm Graz being heavily aggressive in this phase of play.
This is not uncommon for Ajax fans, as counterpressing sequences were common during the more recent periods of Ajax’s success, particularly during Erik ten Hag’s spell in charge. While Ilzer’s sides do not hold as much possession as, for example, Pascal Jansen’s AZ Alkmaar, another area where the Austrian side have excelled under Ilzer is in transitional attacking moments.
They also look to push the full-backs forward in attacking moments, with many goalscoring chances being created, at least in part, by the advancing movements of the Sturm Graz full-backs. With Ilzer’s preferred 4-4-2 diamond formation, the width in attacks come via the full-backs getting forward, which has worked well in the last few seasons for Sturm Graz.
As the data viz graphic above is able to highlight, a good amount of Sturm Graz’s progressive passes into the penalty area have occurred from the wide channels or the half-spaces, showing the tendency for the full-backs to advance and frequently get involved in these attacking phases of play.
These two progressive passes graphics above show the attacking freedom and width that Ilzer looks for his full-backs to create. This data highlights both this current season and last season and looks at the two preferred full-backs for Ilzer during this time, David Schnegg and Jusuf Gazibegovic. As we can see, both are heavily involved in the attacking half of the pitch, with both full-backs commonly playing balls into the box from advanced positions.
While Christian Ilzer may not be a top choice for the Ajax board as they begin their search for a new permanent manager, he should at least be considered. What he has been able to do with Sturm Graz in the last few seasons, and the constant progression to get closer to RB Salzburg, shows he can build a team in his image and show immediate success and continuous improvement.
Marcelo Gallardo, 47 years old, Free agent
One final name to throw out into the picture is former River Plate manager Marcelo Gallardo. The 47-year-old Argentine has actually been linked with the Dutch giants before, with Ajax reportedly contacting him in January to see if there was interest in replacing Alfred Schreuder, who had just been sacked at the time. The Argentine turned them down, citing family reasons, but it would not be a surprise if Ajax tried again.
Gallardo has been courted by European sides before, and while this would be a wildcard option for the Amsterdam club, it could also turn out to be a smart one. The 47-year-old is a legend in South American football coaching circles, with eight years at River Plate in his native Argentina resulting in 14 titles overall, including two Copa Libertadores crowns, the South American equivalent of the UEFA Champions League.
In the 2021 season, the year Gallardo led River Plate to the Argentinian league title, they were dominant when it came to an attacking style of play, which was also a trend throughout his tenure in Buenos Aires. River Plate consistently averaged around 60% possession per season while also leading the league in passes, shots, crosses, and near the top in other metrics as well, like final third entries and touches in the penalty area. To summarise, Gallardo’s style of play would be close to a perfect fit for what many would consider the Ajax style of play.
The above graphic shows the crossing zones of River Plate from Marcelo Gallardo’s last two seasons in charge. As we can gather from this graphic, a lot of ball progression came from the wide areas, particularly between the top of the d and endline. There was also a reasonably even distribution coming from both the left and right flanks, with River Plate looking to pin opposition defences into their own half. From an attacking perspective, the Argentinian side were absolutely dominant when they went forward, something Ajax also were during their recent period of success under ten Hag.
The Argentinian side also had plenty of success getting the ball into the penalty area by dribbling and deep completions as well, with the graphics above showing the penetrating carries from River Plate during their Argentinian league-winning campaign in 2021. As this shows, ball progression is not an issue at all when it comes to the tactics of Marcelo Gallardo. His sides tend to be built around possession principles, aiming to dominate the opposition and pin them into their defensive half. As a result, River Plate consistently became one of Argentina’s best defensive sides as a byproduct of their suffocating attacking style.
While it would not be a surprise if Ajax were to potentially approach Gallardo again to gauge his interest in the position, it still seems like a tough ask for the Dutch giants to convince the 47-year-old Argentinian to become their new head coach.
Conclusion
As this tactical analysis and scout report has shown, Ajax have their work cut out for them if they are to get out of the situation they find themselves in. While they may not hire a new permanent manager anytime soon, these three coaches mentioned in this piece deserve to at least have a mention in the Ajax boardroom and thus be considered for the position in Amsterdam.
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