Alfred Schreuder ‘facing the sack after open dressing room revolt’

Erik ten Hag’s Ajax replacement Alfred Schreuder is facing sacking after an open revolt in the dressing room, reports in the Netherlands have suggested.

Dutchman Schreuder, 50, took over from Ten Hag last summer after he left for Manchester United and has struggled to propel the playing team – and supporters – under his leadership and now faces the prospect of losing his work.

His side Ajax’s 1-1 ‘el Clásico’ draw with Feyenoord over the weekend extended their winless run to six league games, with the club sitting fifth in the Eredivisie, five points behind their big rivals who lead the table.

A raise of the hand vote was taken ahead of the club’s clash with Feyenoord over the weekend.

According to De Telegraph, Players were asked to raise their hands if they thought the problem with the current glitches was staffing. Most, if not all, did, which was seen as tantamount to a vote of no confidence in the current manager.

The report claims that Joost Leenders, the club’s mental coach, asked players to raise their hands if they thought the problem with the club’s recent failures was the first-team coaching staff.

“Most, if not all” are said to have raised their hands in response, a vote of little confidence in the man who is responsible for both the team and the figurehead of staff members.

Most players raised their hands when asked if they thought the problem was staffing.

Parts of the Dutch media have referred to it as a ‘fist on the chin’ for the manager, and it is now public knowledge within the club that there is such discontent with Schreuder.

Despite this open rebellion against Schreuder and his staff, including goalkeeping and fitness trainers, it was reported on Monday that the players showed little sign of throwing in the towel to have their coach fired over the weekend.

De Telegraaf’s conclusion from the match against Feyenoord was that there was a question that the Ajax players needed to answer, whether they still had faith in the manager or not. They offered Davy Klaasen’s equalizer with 20 minutes to go, a week after drawing against FC Twente with 10 men, as an indication that the players were still willing to fight for Schreuder.

This has been seen by the Dutch press as tantamount to a vote of no confidence in Schreuder.

Part of the problem with taking over from Ten Hag was the remarkable success his predecessor enjoyed with the club, both domestically and in Europe.

Ten Hag guided Ajax one step away from its first Champions League final since 1996, while winning back-to-back league crowns in his last two years at the club.

The performances this season have not matched the high levels achieved by Ten Hag during his reign at the club. With the World Cup an obvious warning, they haven’t won in the league since October.

It has been suggested that the club lacks leadership at the top after the departure of Erik ten Hag

It has been suggested that there is a leadership vacuum at the top of the Ajax hierarchy. Marc Overmars, who had been the club’s director of football affairs for 10 years, left last February after sending inappropriate messages to female colleagues. Ten Hag’s role at the club was also integral, with the Dutchman an important figure at all levels.

Meanwhile, supporters were extremely unhappy with the club’s performance in Europe. Drawn in a group with Napoli, Liverpool and Rangers, Ajax was expected to make more than one fist.

Instead, they only beat Rangers and qualified for the Europa League by virtue of the Scottish club’s major misses in the competition.