Andre Onana, Nicolas Tagliafico and Donny van de Beek are free to leave, admits Edwin van der Sar
Ajax chief executive Edwin van der Sar has confirmed that Andre Onana, Nicolas Tagliafico and Donny van de Beek will be allowed to leave as soon as the transfer window opens. All three players have been linked with a move away for nearly two years but had a gentleman’s agreement with the club.
After their fantastic run to the Champions League semi-finals last season, Ajax saw their players in high demand with them eventually letting captain Matthijs de Ligt and Frenkie de Jong leave. But the club came to an agreement with their other players including Hakim Ziyech, Andre Onana, Nicolas Tagliafico and Donny van de Beek. The deal was a gentleman’s agreement between the club and the players that would allow them to leave at the end of this season.
While many would expect interest in the quartet to dissipate, nothing has happened with Ziyech the first man to leave. The playmaker signed a pre-contract agreement with Chelsea and will sign for the Blues in a £33.3m deal. But the other three players have all been heavily linked with a move away and Edwin van der Sar has admitted that they’re free to leave. The Ajax chief-executive also admitted that the Amsterdam side will not be forced to sell under their values.
"Last year, we made verbal agreements with Onana, Tagliafico and Van de Beek to stay another season, and then we look to help each other and find the next step in their careers. Nothing has changed. There won't be a 50 per cent discount. The clubs can forget about that. In January last year, people said we were going to lose seven or eight players but we lost only two key members," said Van der Sar reported Sky Sports.
"The big clubs such as Bayern Munich have said the benchmark fee will go down in the next few transfer windows. But it's easier for them to say because they are the buyers. Of course, the 150m-200m euros transfers are gone. But I think there is still a lot of value for players who come from Ajax. Well educated, experienced in winning and playing European football," Van der Sar added.