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Amsterdam's head coach Ronald Koeman stepped down from his duties as the coach of the Dutch club after Thursday's failure in the UEFA Cup quarter-final match against "Auxerre" and elimination from the tournament.
The 41-year-old Koeman handed in his resignation statement to the club's management this morning. The patience of the former Dutch national team player ran out after "Ajax" finished their participation in the Europa League. The strategist also had no luck in the country's championship, where the Amsterdam team failed to keep up with the leaders "PSV" and "AZ."
"I demanded that the 'Ajax' management immediately terminate our cooperation," said Koeman. "I have to be fair to myself and to 'Ajax.' Yesterday's result forced me to make this decision. I cannot offer enough strength or energy to overcome this downturn and turn the team into a well-playing one again."
Just over three years ago, Koeman, who moved to "Ajax" from "Vitesse," won the double in his first season - the Dutch championship and cup. Last year, the coach managed to triumph in the country's championship again with "Ajax," but this year the team failed to advance from the group stage in the Champions League, and the Amsterdam club withdrew from the UEFA Cup after the first match.
Temporarily, "Ajax" will be coached by former assistant coaches Ruud Krol and Tonny Bruins, but for now, it is difficult to say who will be candidates for the vacant position. Meanwhile, it is speculated that Koeman himself will move to coach the "Valencia" team, which also bid farewell to coach Claudio Ranieri after a defeat in the UEFA Cup.
