Ajax’s Tumultuous Year: A Focus on Youth Development

The year 2025 was one that Ajax would prefer to forget swiftly. Throughout this year, the club not only relinquished its championship title in a historic manner but also endured a notably poor start to the new season.

Bert van Marwijk highlights in his column for De Telegraaf, “There has been much discussion about Ajax throughout 2025. The emergence of young talents at the end of such a tumultuous year is undoubtedly the biggest positive for the club. I find the breakthrough of players like Bounida, Steur, and Bouwman particularly noteworthy. The youth had long been denied opportunities, and now they are finally being given a chance.”

Van Marwijk strongly advocates for a continued focus on Ajax’s youth development, stating, “Ajax has always stood for its homegrown talent, and there are countless examples to support this. It should be a mandatory principle. Every coach at Ajax must be told: ‘Listen, our homegrown talents come first.’ With this current generation, we can immediately see the results. The fans are far more forgiving and quickly rally behind the team. When these young players also begin to make a difference on the pitch, it creates a vastly different atmosphere within the club.”