In collaboration with GOAL, Voetbalzone regularly highlights young players who can go far in the future or who are already earning their spurs in (inter)national top football. This time, attention is paid to the seventeen-year-old attacker Amourricho van Axel Dongen, who last year was proclaimed the greatest talent from Ajax’s youth academy by winning the Abdelhak Nouri Trophy and made his Eredivisie debut on behalf of the team from Amsterdam in January.
It may be a cliché, but there are few youth academy that currently produce more talented young players than Ajax. However, the last time a winger broke through in the main squad and became a permanent fixture in the first team, dates back to January 2017. At that time, the general public was introduced to Justin Kluivert. The now 22-year-old attacker had 13 goals and 10 assists in 56 official games before leaving for Roma in 2019.
In Young Ajax there are currently enough talented wing attackers in the person of Naci Ünüvar, Sontje Hansen and Christian Rasmussen. However, the most important candidate to become a basic player in Ajax 1 as a winger from his own training in the long term, seems to be Axel Dongen’s Amourricho. “I think there are enough talents around with us,” says John Heitinga, trainer of Jong Ajax, opposite Football zone† “One time it is a defender and the last one who managed to break through, or at least has played in the first team a few times, is Van Axel Dongen.”
The seventeen-year-old top talent has been playing in the youth academy of the Amsterdammers since 2013 and has developed into an absolute eye-catcher at De Toekomst sports park in recent years due to his creativity and speed. The winger was rewarded in June last year for his good game with the Abdelhak Nouri Trophy, which is awarded every season to the greatest talent of the youth academy. With this he followed in the footsteps of Ünüvar, Devyne Rensch and Ryan Gravenberch, but also Matthijs de Ligt and Christian Eriksen. With this, Van Axel Dongen was in good company, although it is another Ajax legend who first inspired him: Clarence Seedorf.
“I look up to him very much”, said the teenager opposite Fidelity† “My mother pointed me to him and then I started to get to know him by watching videos. He was a good footballer, but also a good person.” Van Axel Dongen received a message from Seedorf after winning the Abdelhak Nouri Trophy. “He (Seedorf ed.) sent Amourricho a message via Instagram in which he said that Amo was doing well and that he should continue like this,” Van Axel Dongen’s father, Otmar, revealed to Ajax Showtime after his son collected the prize in June. “That was a really happy moment. Amourricho really liked that and it motivates him to continue.”
Amourricho by Axel Dongen!! † for the game & ?? for his family#AjaxO17 pic.twitter.com/7ImMkuUN00
— AFC Ajax (@AFCAjax) October 5, 2019
Van Axel Dongen is taking his first steps as a football player at Zeeburgia, where his football talent has not yet surfaced. As a result, his parents soon unsubscribe him from the renowned amateur association. The youngster has been on Ajax’s radar for more than three years at amateur club OSV after scouts set their eyes on the explosive and fast attacker, who at that time had undergone a stormy development. After a successful internship period, he joined forces with his good friend Gabriel. Misehouy, who is also one of the greatest talents at De Toekomst sports park, belongs to Ajax’s youth academy.
Van Axel Dongen quickly makes a big impression in the youth teams of Ajax. After a few seasons he skips different classes as a young boy. The growth brilliance receives offers from Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund at a young age, all of which are eventually relegated to the bin. “My goal was to stay here anyway, I want to succeed at Ajax,” said van Axel Dongen at the age of fifteen when signing his first professional contract.
According to Heitinga, Van Axel Dongen has what it takes to make the final step to the first team. “Amourricho has a lot of potential,” his trainer says enthusiastically. “He has high expectations of himself. He is a young boy who must first make minutes in Young Ajax, because he has not yet been able to play full matches. It is a boy who makes the difference. He has an individual action, can pass both outside and inside and has power.”
Despite the fact that Ajax was already eliminated in the group stage of the UEFA Youth League this season, Van Axel Dongen was the absolute star. As captain, the attacker scored four times, drawing the attention of Erik ten Hag. Just before the turn of the year, a dream came true, when he was allowed to make his official debut in Ajax 1 as a substitute in the TOTO KNVB Cup against BVV Barendrecht (4-0 win).
With only a handful of matches to his name for Jong Ajax, his Eredivisie debut followed at the beginning of this year. During the comfortable 0-3 win over FC Utrecht, Van Axel Dongen replaced Antony in the final phase, after which he also made his basic debut in the KNVB Cup four days later against Excelsior Maassluis (9-0 win).
“He is a boy with a mission, he knows what he wants and is very aware of the steps he has to take,” says Heitinga. “He also trains with the first team now and then, where you can see that he is cognitively challenged because it all goes even faster. You can see that Amourricho is a talented player. The spotlight is now on him. Finally, he goes to knock on the door when he is ready. The most important thing is that he is fit, will grow content and make a difference at Jong Ajax.”
Van Axel Dongen has been sidelined since early February due to an ankle injury. However, the talent is on the way back. He is expected to resume group training next week. After the winter departure of David Neres and the misstep of Steven Bergwijn, Ten Hag is eagerly looking for a backup for Dusan Tadic and Antony on the wings. Given the strong development of Van Axel Dongen, it should come as no surprise that Ten Hag was allowed to call on the talented teenager again at the end of the season.