Kenneth Taylor and Devyne Rensch have responded for the first time to the appointment of Maurice Steijn at Ajax. The duo let it be known from the training camp of the Dutch Juniors that they are especially happy to have a new trainer again. Taylor expresses his surprise at the prejudices that exist around Steijn. “Nowadays everyone is name-oriented”, the Ajax player remarks to the NOS.
On Wednesday, after a few days of rumor carousel, Ajax sent white smoke over Steijn. De Hagenees has signed for three years in Amsterdam and is the successor to John Heitinga, who has been pushed aside. However, there is criticism from several angles that Steijn has never trained a top club and therefore one nobody would be. Criticism that Taylor can do little with.
“It surprises everyone, but I don’t understand why it surprises everyone,” said the midfielder from Austria on Thursday. “Everyone is name-oriented these days, but I think that’s a bit nonsense. It doesn’t necessarily surprise me. When I heard it I thought: luckily, we will have a new trainer as soon as possible.” Rensch says he was ‘not so busy with a new trainer’. “I had every confidence that the management would find a good new trainer. Of course you are curious, then there is Maurice Steijn. We will see.”
Steijn seems to have already won over some critics with his first press conference. For example, Hans Kraay junior was very pleased with the way in which Steijn presented himself there. “He made a crushing impression,” said the presenter annex reporter on Wednesday ESPN. “He was full of self-confidence and also noticed that many supporters say: ‘Steijn, we don’t need that’. But there was no one who thought: hip hip hooray, I can become a trainer of Ajax. There was an experienced, very confident man sitting there.”