By David Gold
November 25 – Dutch giants Ajax will choose between two of the most influential men in the club’s history, Louis van Gaal (pictured) and Johan Cruyff, at a shareholders meeting on December 12, in order to end the internal civil war between the two men’s respective supporters.
Cruyff, who is a member of Ajax’s Advisory Board, was incensed when his fellow four Board members appointed van Gaal as their general director last week without his knowledge.
The relationship between Cruyff and his fellow Board members is now so bad that the three time Ballon d’Or winner refuses to work alongside them.
“It is now time for the club to decide which direction they want to go because I won’t cooperate with these four anymore,” the former Barcelona player and manager said.
This last week has been the most fraught since van Gaal’s appointment, with Cruyff being accused of racism by his fellow Board members.
After another former club legend and Board member, Edgar Davids, had spoken on television about racist remarks made towards him, Steven ten Have publicly announced that it had been Cruyff who had been the guilty party.
The pair have since played down the dispute, with Davids defending Cruyff and saying he is not racist, but they may not be working together for much longer as it will ultimately come down to the club’s shareholders over whom to back.
With the Ajax supporters’ association owning the majority of the Dutch champions’ shares, they will ultimately have the final say.
Many are loyal to Cruyff (pictured centre), whose achievements on the field for the team, which won three European Cups in the 1970s, as well as the Holland team which reached two World Cup finals in the same decade, made him into a national hero, and he is seen as one of the greatest players of all time.
But van Gaal also has his support, and he has also played a significant role in the club’s history, managing their last great team to the European Cup in 1995, a season in which they went unbeaten in both Europe and their domestic league.
Cruyff and van Gaal differ on the development of the club in the coming years as they look to restore the four time European champions’ former glory.
Cruyff’s vision does not include a technical director of any sort, and he has brought in a number of former players, such as Wim Jonk, Dennis Bergkamp and Frank de Boer, the current senior coach, to key positions.
In addition to the dispute between the pair, whose history goes back to the 1970s when van Gaal was also on the playing staff of Ajax, the three man board of the club have all left their positions this week and will be replaced next month.
The internal strife off the pitch has not been entirely reflected on the field, with Ajax close to qualifying for the second stage of the European Champions League for the first time in six years.
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