Celtic defender Kristoffer Ajer has named Ajax as the side the Hoops should look to emulate in Europe. The Dutch side shocked Europe after knocking defending champions Real Madrid out of the Champions League.
If the Hoops want to make an impact in Europe Ajer believes the Ajax blueprint is worth following.
“We can use that to inspire us because we have a really good pathway for our academy players at this club” he told the Scottish Sun.
“Create a system”
“But also if you build up the way Celtic have been doing, and the way Ajax have done, it’s possible to create a system where you’re not only selling great players but also bringing really good players through you can keep.”
Ajax’s system seems to involve bringing players through from the academy and selling them on for huge money.
Blueprint difficult to replicate
The latest example of this is Frenkie De Jong, who is joining Barcelona in the summer for €75 million. The chances of Celtic getting that kind of money for a player would seem to be far-fetched.
Ajax and Celtic do have something in common – they are both big teams playing in relatively small leagues. But the similarities end there.
There is more money in Dutch football than in Scotland. There is no reliance on plastic pitches. Whilst Ajer’s comments are laudable, the chances of the Hoops following in Ajax’s footsteps seem slim to none.
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