THE HAGUE, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Ajax have appointed Maurice Steijn as new head coach as the 49-year-old Dutchman signed a three-year contract in Amsterdam.
Steijn led Sparta to surprising sixth place in the Eredivisie last season. Previously he worked as head coach for ADO Den Haag, VVV-Venlo, Al-Wahda in the United Arabic Emirates and NAC Breda.
"Maurice is now roughly 20 years active as a trainer in professional football, of which 10 years as head coach," Sven Mislintat, director of football of Ajax, said in a press release.
"With all the clubs he worked for, the results exceeded the expectations. 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," Mislintat added.
Ajax had a disappointing season finishing third in the Eredivisie behind champions Feyenoord and second-placed PSV. Coach Alfred Schreuder was fired in January this year, and under his successor John Heitinga the results hardly improved. ■
