The Eredivisie may well be in full swing, but there is a flurry of transfer action going on at Ajax. There looks set to be some big ins and outs before the transfer window shuts on 1st September.
Talented defensive midfielder could be set for Milan switch
According to Milan Matters and Italian journalist Matteo Moretto, Italian giants Milan have agreed a deal with the representatives of Ajax’s highly-rated young defensive midfielder Silvano Vos.
🚨🌕 | AC Milan have reached a total agreement with Silvano Vos on personal terms.
In the coming days, Milan will intensify contacts with Ajax to reach an agreement on transfer fee.@MatteMoretto 🇳🇱 pic.twitter.com/osoCg6QCBc
— Milan Matters (@MilanMatters) August 21, 2024
However, an agreement on a fee with Ajax has yet to be signed. After requesting to leave the Dutch giants, the youngster is on the transfer list.
It seems that the two clubs disagree on Vos’s worth. Ajax reportedly values him at around €10m, but Milan is not keen on spending that sort of money to sign the young midfielder.
Vos would be an ideal signing for the Rossoneri. He is under 22 and can play in the first team without using a squad place, while he can also play in the Milan Futuro team.
He has made just 17 appearances for Ajax’s senior team. However, Vos has been a regular in the club’s u-21 squad in the Keuken Kampioen Divisie, making 57 appearances overall during his career, including 20 league appearances last season.
The 19-year-old wants to play more first-team football, but a move to Milan is unlikely to give him more senior football.
However, the deal could suit everybody if he can get in and around the first-team squad in Milan. A compromise over a fee is likely, with the midfielder starting a new chapter of his career in Italy.
Gorter set to leave in an exchange deal
Elsewhere, De Telegraaf is reporting that Ajax goalkeeper Jay Gorter could be set for a loan switch to Heerenveen, with Andries Noppert moving in the opposite direction to the Amsterdam club.
Gorter has struggled for first-team football in the Dutch capital since joining from Go Ahead Eagles in 2019. He has played just 15 times for Ajax’s first team, with only nine of those appearances being in the Eredivisie.
He appears to be the club’s third-choice goalkeeper behind veteran star Ramco Pasveer and Diant Ramaj. At 24, he needs to play more at the first-team level. A switch to Heerenveen may just be what he needs to move his career forward.
Ironically, Noppert is also a former GO Ahead Eagles player. He joined Heerenveen in 2022 from the club, having started his professional career at his current club as a youngster. At 30, Noppert is at a different stage of his career than Gorter, who is just starting in the game.
Noppert put in some impressive displays at Heerenveen earlier in his career and was even the Netherlands’ first-choice at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. His career has dipped slightly in recent times, though, and he made just 22 appearances in the Dutch top flight with Heerenveen last season.
A switch to Ajax would be an exciting one for most players, especially those from the Netherlands.
However, with fierce competition for a place in the Ajax goal, there is no guarantee that the five-time capped keeper will be first-choice. He may well serve a similar role as Gorter did and warm the bench.
Only time will tell whether either player gets much out of the potential transfer. It seems the deal could be more beneficial to Gorter than Noppert.
Ajax linked with out-of-favour Everton star
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According to Football Insider, Ajax has enquired about Everton’s out-of-favour defender Mason Holgate. The former Barnsley star is Everton’s fifth-choice centre-back after falling down the pecking order at the Merseyside club.
However, due to a right-back crisis at the club that has seen the likes of Seamus Coleman and Nathan Patterson sidelined, Holgate came off the bench in Everton’s Premier League opening day 3-0 home defeat against Brighton. His appearance lasted just five minutes, though.
The versatile defender came on at right-back after Ashley Young, who previously occupied the position, was shown a red card. With so many injuries in the position, Holgate will likely feature in the spot until an alternative is found.
Everton are keen to offload the defender, who has spent loan spells at the likes of Southampton and Sheffield United in recent seasons. With just 12 months left on his contract, the Toffees will look to do a deal before the transfer window shuts on September 1st.
That means Ajax could potentially sign the 27-year-old for a small nominal fee, which could prove to be shrewd business, even if Holgate has struggled for form in recent seasons.
Holgate has made over 150 appearances for Everton, so he has a good level of experience, even if his quality has sometimes been questioned.
A permanent move may well get the defender back to the form that once made him one of the most promising young English defenders.
Which of the above deals, if any, would you be excited by as an Ajax fan?