Devyne Rensch must ‘grow more content’, says Erik ten Hag. The eighteen-year-old defender of Ajax fell out with a cramp on Saturday evening against Heracles Almelo (0-0) twelve minutes before time. That happened to Rensch several times last season, Ten Hag acknowledges at the press conference for the away match against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League. He believes that Rensch as a right wing defender should be able to play with a higher intensity.
“That is a point that he has to work on,” Ten Hag responds to the question whether Rensch’s failure against Heracles says something about his physical state. “He had that often last season. He needs to grow more content, that’s not so illogical. We sometimes forget that he is very young and that he played central defense for a long time in youth. Now he plays as a fullback. As a right wing defender in my team you are not only there to stop balls, you also have an attacking input.”
“A lot is expected of you in running, you have to run at a high intensity. He can take another step in that direction and he also has to work on that. He has that in him”, thinks Ten Hag, who used Rensch against Heracles because Noussair Mazraoui was missing due to illness. Mazraoui is with us to Germany and therefore seems to be available for the game in Dortmund. However, Rensch is also in the picture for other positions: he also has experience as a central defender, left back and defensive midfielder. Ten Hag hopes that Rensch will focus on every position for which he could qualify.
“I think he should also play in all positions in the back, and also as a defensive midfielder,” says the Ajax trainer. “That boy has so much in him. He is still so young and can still develop everything. Ultimately, it will be determined in which position he can make the greatest contribution to the team. In this phase, he must continue to focus on multiple positions. He eventually has to see where a spot opens up, or he has to knock someone out. It doesn’t matter where it is.”
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