Martin Jol

            I’ve delayed the writing of my second post for many days now, as I anxiously awaited the final answer to the question of the summer:  Will Martin Jol leave Ajax for Fulham?  I didn’t want to write a post on this issue because I wasn’t quite sure how I felt about it just yet.  I kept changing my mind.  I was absolutely schizophrenic on the subject.  First, I would be fine with it, confident that we could survive the short-term drama and upheaval.  Then, I would worry that Ajax was so chronically sick that it couldn’t even hold on to a manager for more than a year, that Suarez, Stekelenburg, van der Wiel, Vertonghen, and maybe even De Zeeuw would demand a transfer in frustration, and that Blind and de Boer would fail spectacularly as Jol’s successors.  And then finally I would remind myself that this whole thing was just an elaborate rouse constructed by Jol to pressure the board into allowing him to buy worthy replacements for Pantelic and Rommedahl.  Wash, rinse, repeat.

            Either way, I was delighted to wake up to the news that Martin Jol has decided to stay at Ajax after all, having hammered out a win-win compromise with Rick van den Boog.  Short-term stability accrues long term benefits.  Above all else, what Ajax needs is stability.  That’s what will bring confidence to the players, the fans, and the rest of the institution. Ajax needs to perform.  Ajax needs to play Champions League football, win their third star, and play their way back to financial stability.  Jol can accomplish this, so much is clear.  He has the talent and the personality.

            Having said that, my recent case of schizophrenia was not without cause, for Martin Jol is probably not the ideal man for Ajax in the long-term.  Some may disagree, but when I look at Martin Jol I don’t see Ajax’s Ferguson, or Ajax’s Wenger.  I see Ajax’s Hiddink, or Ajax’s Advocaat.  Someone who will step in for a couple of years, provide strong results and leave behind a solid foundation for the next man, while he moves on to his latest, more lucrative project.  Jol is a careerist.  I should add that I believe this to be a good thing for Ajax.  In the long run, Jol is too conservative a man for the job. But more on this later.  For now, let us enjoy the peace and quiet.  Let us hope that Ajax remains an oasis of calm for the foreseeable future—or at least until next week’s Champions League qualifier against PAOK.

Speaking of PAOK, they fired their manager, Mario Beretta, today.  He has only been in charge since the beginning of the summer.  While we were all fretting about the heat being turned up in Amsterdam right before the big match, we didn’t even realize that our opponents were ablaze.

Thanks for listening,

John