Erik ten Hag leaves champions Ajax with a new goalscoring record that will leave Man United fans drooling
Erik ten Hag will be leaving Ajax on a high note after clinching his third successive Eredivisie title.
De Godenzonen knew a win against Heerenveen at the Johan Cruyff Arena, their final home match this season, would secure a record-extending 36th national championship. In front of a sold-out crowd Ten Hag’s men put together another ruthless display and by doing so they celebrated with one game to spare.
Nico Tagliafico, Steven Berghuis and top scorer Sebastien Haller all found the net before half-time. After the break Brian Brobbey and Edson Álvarez completed a 5-0 rout. This performance had a sense of déjà vu as Ajax became the first side ever to win ten games with a five or more goal margin within a single Eredivisie campaign.
“We have beaten opponents with our winning mentality. That also includes being clever – smart on the pitch,” Ten Hag said afterwards. “This gives an incredible feeling of satisfaction. We have put in so much work together. The team has worked hard and stayed together despite a lot of setbacks.”
𝗪𝗘 𝗔𝗥𝗘 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗠𝗣𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦 ❌❌❌#XXX6 pic.twitter.com/kU88HPcNfi
— AFC Ajax (@AFCAjax) May 11, 2022
Heading into his final game in charge, at Vitesse Arnhem on May 15, the Amsterdammers sit on 96 goals after 33 matches played, which means this could end up being Ten Hag’s least prolific full season in charge after overseeing 119 (2018/19) and 102 (2020/21) goals scored. Nevertheless by successfully defending Ajax’s crown the soon-to-be Manchester United head coach becomes the fourth different Ajax manager to complete a three-peat albeit not in consecutive seasons as the 2019/20 campaign was called off.
This exclusive group before Ten Hag’s addition was made up of legendary European Cup-winning bosses Rinus Michels (1965/66, 1966/67, 1967/68), Louis van Gaal (1993/94, 1994/95, 1995/96) and Frank de Boer (2010/11, 2011/12, 2012/13, 2013/14). Interestingly, only Stefan Kovacs — who led Ajax to a historic European treble in 1971/72 — has a higher point average (2.69) than Ten Hag (2.46) as boss of the Amsterdam giants.
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