In May last year, sporting director Marc Overmars admitted that it would be ‘logical’ if David Neres wanted to leave Ajax in the summer transfer window (Football Oranje).
Nine months on, a parting of the ways is starting to feel less logical and more inevitable. The fact is that Neres is no longer a guaranteed starter at the Johan Cruyff Arena. He’s not even the club’s most exciting Brazilian winger these days.
That honour goes to compatriot Anthony, a younger, more technically-gifted footballer who has struck up an almost telepathic understanding with the likes of Dusan Tadic and Sebastien Haller.
Anthony’s emergence has restricted Neres to just three Eredivisie starts this season. In all competitions, he’s been included in Erik Ten Hag’s first XI on just five occasions.
That dazzling 2018/19 season, when Neres was one of the first names on the team-sheet for an Ajax side who came within seconds of the Champions League final, feels like a long time ago.
And, according to The Times, the potential arrival of Steven Bergwijn from Tottenham Hotspur could be the final nail in Neres’s Ajax coffin.
The Eredivisie champions have failed with an opening bid for Bergwijn but, with Fabrizio Romano reporting that Tottenham have agreed to sell their £27 million benchwarmer, the smart money is on the former PSV talisman re-joining the club where he started his career before the month is out.
Especially if Adama Traore, who feels like a more natural fit for Antonio Conte’s wing-back system, swaps the Black Country for North London.
Will Steven Bergwijn replace David Neres at Ajax?
According to Jeunes Footeaux, Premier League pair Everton and Newcastle United would be willing to offer Neres a fresh start.
The Brazil international is valued at around £16 million. That is a damn sight less than the £45 million fee Ajax were demanding just two-and-a-half years ago, when Everton first expressed their interest and Neres was at his most coveted (Tuttomercatoweb).
Of course, Everton and Newcastle supporters may have reservations about signing a player who’s standing and market value has dropped like a stone over the last 18 months or so.
But form, as they say, is temporary. Neres’ class is permanent and a change of scene would give him the chance to show that his breakthrough 2018/19 season was not merely a one-hit wonder.
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