Michel Sanchez, the head coach of Ajax Amsterdam, has defended German goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen, on loan from Barcelona, after the Dutch press turned on him over his performances in recent weeks. One comparison went as far as likening him to a wax figure at the famous Madame Tussauds museum.
The Spanish coach spoke out after Ajax's 1-1 draw with NEC Nijmegen, a match in which the side's habit of building attacks from the back irritated sections of the support. They held the ball for long spells without ever moving quickly towards the opponent's goal.
At the post-match press conference, one journalist compared ter Stegen to one of the statues at the Madame Tussauds museum in Amsterdam, a reference to him keeping the ball at his feet for long periods with no clear movement. Some saw that as the reason the tempo dropped and chances dried up.
Michel pushed back at the description, in commentscarried by the Tribuna website, saying: "I don't agree with you describing him as a statue," stressing that the ball being at the goalkeeper's feet, when he is the free man on the pitch, does not necessarily mean he is responsible for the absence of attacking solutions.
His argument was that the team needed to handle those situations differently rather than pick apart one player's performance, with collective movement and the speed of ball circulation the real issues.
Michel said: "We should have played differently in those situations, relying on short passes and forcing the opponent to move more, in order to create a numerical advantage and spaces behind their defence."
The 34-year-old German goalkeeper joined Ajax from Barcelona on loan during the summer transfer window and has started almost every one of the club's matches in the Dutch league this season.
He has his coach's confidence. Ajax's performances in recent weeks have still drawn criticism from supporters and media outlets, particularly over the way they play out from the back and the slow build-up of attacks.
Rather than pin the blame on ter Stegen alone, Michel insisted the fix lies in the collective performance, allowing the team to exploit spaces and move more effectively in the matches ahead.