Nigel de Jong & Ajax

It's done. Nigel de Jong has left Ajax for Hamburg SV, to join Rafael van der Vaart there. De Jong's contract with Ajax was expiring next summer and he already announced that he didn't want to extend his cntract. So instead of letting him go for free on a Bosman transfer, Ajax made some money out of him by selling him in the winter (for a reportedly $1.5m).

As an Ajax fan, it's a bit sad to see Nigel go as he was one of the very few Amsterdammers in the selection. He was born and raised in Geuzenveld, an area in Amsterdam West, where my cousin lives as well (and where I frequently stay). At first he was willing to do anything just to play for Ajax, but lately he only wanted to play midfield. Which led to him being sat on the bench quite a lot.

So I guess for both parties it's good that Nigel left a bit earlier. Good luck Nigel!

Earlier, Bogdan Lobont has left Ajax to join Fiorentina and Julien Escude for Sevilla. That's also a good decision as Lobont was not in Blind's starting eleven. And there are some other players that have announced that they will not renew their contract next summer: Steven Pienaar, Maxwell, Hatem Trabelsi, Nourdin Boukhari and Tomas Galasek. So next season Ajax will have to do without 8 players.

Hopefully next season we (or I) will see a fresh Ajax!