Well, I’m back. Did you all miss me? I sure as hell did. My last piece was around six weeks ago, and a lot has happened since I went on vacation. This week I will spend some time recapping December, because there are some things that need addressing.
First of all, Ajax kind of imploded in December. We lost against Cambuur (!) in the KNVB Cup, bottled an amazing game against Standard Liège and lost some momentum in the title race against Feyenoord. So now, instead of having the same total of points as our loved rivals, we trail them by five points. Which, to be honest, is an unnecessary challenge.
Just look at the games we didn’t win in the first halve of the season. We dropped points at home against Willem II and Roda JC, and failed to defeat both main title rivals PSV and Feyenoord as well as number five AZ. We are way to inconsistent up to this point, and Feyenoord are extremely constant in their performances. My conclusion for the second halve of the season: we really need an implosion from Feyenoord and need to build momentum from January on. Only then will we have a serious shot at the title.
In other news, I seriously considered leaving my post as much-criticised Ajax-writer. My muse decided to walk out on me. He decided to leave Ajax behind and by doing so, he left a void in my heart. Of course, his departure was some time coming, but that did not mean it didn’t hurt. And that’s why, effective immediately, I resign as writer for AjaxDaily, and focus myself on writing for my new favourite team in the whole wide world: Tianjin Teda.
No, all silliness aside: Gudelj has f*cked off to China and I’m really thrilled. I do have two small objections with the transfer. First of all, I almost can’t stand the fact that Nemanja walks away from all this with an annual salary of five million euros. That almost feels like Judas receiving a nice out-of-town-condo after betraying Jesus in the New Testament. Of course, that version of the Bible would include Judas having an enormous tattoo of his father’s leg on his upper thigh, and that’s not really the case, as it seems.
My other problem with the transfer is more of an issue for Gudelj himself than it is one for me. We’re talking about a guy who couldn’t stand the idea of being benched in favor of Lasse Schøne for a month. Now he has got to compete with John Obi Mikel for his place as defensive midfielder. That is going to be some sort of mental torture for my favourite unstable Serbian. Well, Nemanja, if you ever unblock me on Twitter, I hope you read this: I will miss you, and wish you the best of luck.
