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Erik ten Hag makes surprise decision on return to management
Dylan ter Laak
- 12 Nov 2025 06:02 GMT
- 4 min read
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Former Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag will not be the new manager of Ajax, according to Dutch media.
The 55-year-old was considered a top candidate to succeed John Heitinga. However, his return is now definitively off the table, according to Algemeen Dagblad, meaning Ajax will have to continue searching.
Since Heitinga's dismissal, the Amsterdam giants have been hard at work scouring the market for a new manager. Ten Hag's name was quickly mentioned, and it became clear that he was considered the absolute favourite to become the new head coach.
The Dutchman, who had previously enjoyed great success at Ajax, had even scheduled a meeting with Alex Kroes, the Amsterdam club's departing technical director.
According to the report, several discussions took place, and Ten Hag has made a decision based on these discussions. It is reported that the manager sees an 'insufficient basis' for a successful collaboration.
From bad to worse for Ajax
This is all due to the many positions currently needing to be filled at Ajax. In addition to a new manager and technical director, several gaps have also arisen on the Supervisory Board.
For the Amsterdam club, Erik ten Hag's rejection is the second setback this week. It was announced on Monday that Arsenal legend Marc Overmars saw no point in a return as technical director.
He prefers a longer stay at Royal Antwerp. Overmars expressed regret at the current situation at Ajax, but also called the club a 'bygone thing.'
It had been unclear for some time whether Ten Hag would become the new manager of the Amsterdam club. At the start of the season, he was quickly sacked as manager of Bayer Leverkusen.
Wolverhampton Wanderers were also recently interested in Ten Hag, but talks with the Dutchman yielded no results, prompting the Premier League strugglers to hire Rob Edwards instead.
Ten Hag will use the coming period to consider his future. As for Ajax, Paul Simonis is now being considered among the favourite options after his sacking by Bundesliga club Wolfsburg at the weekend.
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