The AFCA Supporters Club posted a statement on its social media channels on Saturday evening. The supporters' association makes it clear that it is disturbed by the attitude of Supervisory Board chairman Michael van Praag and wants Alex Kroes to stay at Ajax.

“Enough has been said and written in the past two weeks about the situation surrounding Alex Kroes,” the supporters association begins the statement. “Ultimately, it is no longer about the question of guilt, but about the punishment that comes with it.”

“We also indicated this during the discussions we had with Michael van Praag and the Ajax management. The speed, the certainty and the way in which Van Praag indicates that dismissal is the only option has disturbed us enormously. There are several roads that lead to Amsterdam. Every situation and circumstance is different and must be assessed on a case-by-case basis.”

“The AFCA Supporters Club wants Alex Kroes to continue in his position as general manager. After all, we believe in his vision and qualities. In recent weeks, we have been doing everything we can behind the scenes every day to keep Kroes in his position. However, we remain dependent on the expertise of lawyers.”

The supporters' association clearly doubts Van Praag's intentions. “What strikes us is that Michael van Praag, together with the rest of the Supervisory Board, puts a lot of energy into the dismissal of Alex Kroes. This revolves around insider trading for 17,500 shares (approximately € 190,000).”

“On the other hand, the same Supervisory Board makes little effort to investigate whether the approximately 110 million euros spent on mediocre players is correct, lawful and sufficiently controlled.”

Finally, the association returns to the investigation conducted into former technical director Sven Mislintat. “The conclusions of the Mislintat report, which were pasted last week as a cheap appendix to the agenda of the proclaimed EGM of May 21, are proof of this. There is absolutely nothing to show that this was a high-quality study. As far as we are concerned, it looks like a report of which it was known in advance what the outcome would be.”

“We hope that Alex Kroes can continue his work as general director again soon,” the association concludes. “The AFCA Supporters Club continues to work hard in the foreground and background for the right people in the right place within our club.”

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