Ajax hires Maurice Steijn as head coach

The club said Wednesday the 49-year-old Steijn will sign a three-year deal to join from Sparta Rotterdam, which he led to sixth place in the Eredivisie this season.

Published : Jun 14, 2023 15:45 IST , AMSTERDAM - 1 MIN READ

Steijn signing the three-year contract for Ajax. | Photo Credit: Ajax

Ajax hired Maurice Steijn as its new coach to replace John Heitinga, whose contract was not extended after the Amsterdam club finished a disappointing third in the Dutch Eredivisie.

The club said Wednesday the 49-year-old Steijn will sign a three-year deal to join from Sparta Rotterdam, which he led to sixth place in the Eredivisie this season after rescuing it from relegation trouble a season earlier. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.

In the past, Steijn has coached Dutch clubs ADO The Hague, VVV-Venlo, NAC Breda and Sparta as well as Al-Wahda in the United Arab Emirates.

“At all the clubs he worked for, results exceeded expectations,” said Ajax Director of Football Sven Mislintat. “So he has shown multiple times with his teams that he is a real overperformer. He is ready for a step up, I’m sure of that.”

Heitinga replaced Alfred Schreuder, who replaced Erik ten Hag but was fired in January after only half a season at the Dutch powerhouse following a string of seven matches without a victory.