Ajax's Mohammed Kudus channels Ronaldinho with filthy skill and pass

Ajax are a never-ending production line of young talent, aren’t they?

It was, after all, remarkable to see the extent to which the Dutch giants had regenerated last season just three years on from having Matthijs de Ligt and Frenkie de Jong stripped from the team that made them Champions League semi-finalists.

But once again, there they were, putting on another fantastic season for the world to see to such an extent that they were once again plundered by some of Europe’s biggest clubs in the summer transfer market.

Just as they had been pillaged of their star men back in 2019, the Amsterdam club were rinsed of most of their prized assets and even their manager as Erik ten Hag headed to Manchester United.

And not only did their former coach take Lisandro Martinez and Antony with him for good measure, but André Onana, Ryan Gravenberch, Sébastien Haller, Nicolás Tagliafico and Noussair Mazraoui also departed for other top clubs.

For most teams, that would represent a gutting of such devastating proportions that they would simply be unable to recover for seasons upon seasons, but Ajax simply aren’t ‘most teams’.

And you needn’t look any further for signs of recovery than the fact that Ajax already find themselves top of the Eredivisie table with a menacing record of six wins from as many games with 21 goals scored and just three conceded.

While, yes, that is in part a testament to the top players who have stuck around at the Johan Cruyff Arena such as Jurriën Timber and Dusan Tadic, it’s also an indicator that Ajax are once again blooding more and more young talent.

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