Kasper Dolberg is not ahead of Marcos Leonardo in the pecking order at Ajax. Coach Míchel made that clear after Ajax’s emphatic 1-5 win away to Fortuna Sittard. Dolberg replaced Tolu Arokodare and capped his substitute appearance with a goal.
Dolberg made it 1-4 in the 79th minute. After the match in Limburg, Ajax’s Spanish coach was asked whether Dolberg will now get the nod over summer signing Leonardo for the time being.
"It has absolutely nothing to do with the hierarchy. Absolutely not. We are one team, and everyone is important. We felt this match was better suited to Dolberg’s qualities. That is all. I also have a lot of confidence in Leo," the Ajax coach said at the subsequent press conference.
Míchel also had warm words for Sofyan Amrabat. The recently signed midfielder came on against PSV last week and then remarkably completed the full 90 minutes against Fortuna.
"It is very special that a player can do something like that. Sofyan has a tremendous mentality to get through these kinds of matches and also has a great deal of experience. In the last ten to fifteen minutes he was clearly more tired. But by that point the match had already been decided and everything became a lot easier," said the winning coach.
The Ajax boss was delighted with his side’s convincing win in Limburg. "We created many chances against a team with a good mentality. And one who had not yet lost in the league until now."
"I am happy with the result, especially after the defeat to PSV. It is important that we won the next match. Now we are focusing on the two matches we are playing at home," the coach said, referring to the games against Willem II and Excelsior.