September 1991
Ajax… Fifteen Years Ago
The KNVB had a very hard time putting an Eredivisie fixture
list together that every club, every mayor and every police
chief could live with. It was one hell of a puzzle, and as a
result Ajax will play five Eredivisie games in a row. September
1991 will be a month of home games only for the Amsterdammers,
although one of them (the UEFA Cup encounter with Örebro
SK) will be played in the German city of Düsseldorf.
The first side to visit De Meer is MVV from Maastricht, on
Sunday 01 September. Young left winger Michel Kreek plays
instead of Bryan Roy, while Stefan Pettersson plays as a
'number 10' directly behind John van Loen, Ajax's new 'target
man'. Van Loen is a tall battering-ram rather than a typical
Ajax forward, but he's had a convincing start in Amsterdam and
is also the man to break the deadlock against MVV, in the 37th
minute of the game. After the break it's 'Bergkamp time'. For
the MVV game he returned to his old position of right winger,
but an on-form Bergkamp will score at any position. His brace
of artistic goals makes it 3-0 to Ajax. Meanwhile, PSV beat
Sparta at 'The Castle' (1-3). The Eindhoven side still have a
100% score, Ajax are a point behind them.
The 'Bergkamp show' continues one week later in the home
game against RKC. After goals from John van 't Schip (14') and
Bergkamp (32'), Jos Luhukay's 67th minute strike seems to bring
RKC back into the game, but their hopes are short-lived: an
absolutely stunning hattrick from Dennis Bergkamp makes it 5-1
in 18 minutes' time. It is remarkably that Bergkamp
really started to play well when his old mate Stefan
Pettersson replaced John van Loen. Van Loen scored some goals
in recent weeks, but as a footballer he doesn't seem to have
the chemistry with Bergkamp that Pettersson has. A dilemma for
Leo Beenhakker.
Leo Beenhakker inspects the pitch
of Ajax's 'home away from home': Düsseldorf's Rhein
Stadium.
Bryan Roy, by the way, is once again left out of the team.
This time it's not Michel Kreek who got the nod instead, but a
totally unknown 18 year-old from the Ajax youth named Edgar
Davids. His début at the left wing is rather
unremarkable. Roy seems to be out of favour for the moment.
The next Wednesday (11 September) five Ajacieden (De Boer,
Bergkamp, Blind, Wouters and Winter) see action for
Oranje in a friendly international against Poland in
Eindhoven. The final score of 1-1 is slightly disappointing.
The Dutch goal is scored by... Dennis Bergkamp, his seventh
goal in the first 11 days of September.
Sunday 15 September. Groningen away. Well... That game was
supposed to be played, but - one day before the game -
it is unexpectedly called off. According to rumours the
'hard core' elements of the two clubs have arranged a large
scale confrontation in downtown Groningen: the Amsterdam F-Side
versus their Groningen counterparts, the notorious Z-Side.
The mayor decides to take no risk and vetoes the
fixture. Next up is the first of three European
'home' games in Düsseldorf, Germany, thanks to the violent
behaviour of certain individuals from the F-Side, and now
this...
On Monday 16 September Ajax drive to Germany for a unique
moment in club history: for the first time Ajax will officially
play a home game outside of The Netherlands. Three European
home games in Düsseldorf and Ajax can finally
forget about the 'bar incident' of 1989, which almost destroyed
the club financially. Tonight, at the enormous Rhein Stadium,
every Ajacied seems to be happy. 17,000 Dutch fans made the
trip, which means that the place isn't even half full, but the
atmosphere is exuberant, simply because there's something to
celebrate: Ajax return to 'Europe' after a one year ban and -
in practice - almost two years of absence.
On fire in September
1991: Dennis Bergkamp, in action against Örebro
SK.
Leo Beenhakker's most remarkable decision is that Van Loen
starts on the bench. Stefan Pettersson returns to the striker
position against his fellow Swedes. The first half makes one
thing clear: Örebro left their offensive ambitions at home
and totally focus on defending. It takes Ajax almost an hour to
find an opening and the goal is a very fortunate one. Dennis
Bergkamp's free-kick takes a deflection off Örebro's wall
and bows over goalkeeper Karlsson: 1-0 (59'). There it is:
Ajax's first European goal since 27 September 1989.
Örebro fall apart after Bergkamp's goal. Aron Winter
makes it 2-0 by heading home from a corner and in the 84th
minute Stefan Pettersson makes it 3-0. Ajax can travel to
Sweden with confidence in a fortnight.
On Sunday 22 September yet another home game is on the
agenda, this time against Eredivisie newcomers De Graafschap.
Leo Beenhakker hasn't made his mind up just yet: Van Loen
returns, Pettersson starts on the bench. Bryan Roy gets his
spot back as well, while Michel Kreek surprisingly starts as a
left midfielder instead of Alfons Groenendijk, who is
struggling with injuries.
The game is a piece of cake for Ajax: five goals once again,
in front of 16,533 people at De Meer. Bryan Roy and Jan Wouters
make it 2-0 in the first half. After the break, there are goals
from Aron Winter, De Graafschap's Marcel Peters, Dennis
Bergkamp and Marciano Vink. 5-1 is the final score.
The next home game, against Fortuna Sittard, is not played
on Sunday, but on Saturday evening. Always special: an 'evening
fixture' at De Meer. 18,000 fans expect goals. Bryan Roy
lost his spot again, Kreek moves to the left wing and Van Loen
starts upfront. Stefan Pettersson has the unlikely position of
left midfielder. The shifting doesn't really affect Ajax's
play. The team are on-form and sometimes unstoppable at the
moment. Well before half-time the score is 3-0, courtesy of
John van Loen (penalty), Aron Winter and - of course - Dennis
Bergkamp, who lifts his total to an amazing ten goals in five
matches in September. The second half is a bit boring and
Richard Sneekes (a product of the Ajax youth system) scores for
the visitors, but hey: a 3-1 win - that still ain't bad.
Ajax's first European goal in
almost two years: Bergkamp's shot takes a deflection off the
wall and surprises the Örebro goalkeeper.
Five games, five wins and 19 goals in total... September
1991 was a great month for Ajax. Yet, the journalists
waiting in the press room for the press conference after Ajax
vs Fortuna, sense that something's wrong. The man to come out
on behalf of Ajax is not head-coach Leo Beenhakker, but
chairman Michael van Praag, accompanied by one of Beenhakker's
assistants, Louis van Gaal. Van Praag sits down, visibly upset,
and makes an announcement no-one ever expected: Leo Beenhakker,
the key man in the club's plans for the future, has resigned.
He got an offer from his 'old love', Real Madrid, and decided
to accept. Van Praag's voice trembles: "All I can tell you is
that Leo Beenhakker has deeply, deeply disappointed us. In
fact, I feel betrayed and let down by him - and that's the
worst feeling you can imagine."
28 September 1991: "Time to go,"
thinks Leo Beenhakker. "My time has come," thinks Louis van
Gaal.
What now? The press soon find out. Beenhakker's successor is
sat right next to Van Praag: Louis van Gaal, a man most fans
and journalists don't really know. He played for Ajax, but
never made it to the first team. He worked for the club as a
coach, but never as the 'first man'. He's originally a
gymnastics teacher and he is known for his focus on discipline
- just like the great Rinus Michels. This is his moment.
The first question: Mr Van Gaal, how would you describe
yourself? Van Gaal doesn't need any time to think: "I am very
straight-forward, honest and righteous person. And yes: that
might sometimes come across as harsh." Can you believe
it…? Beenhakker has left the building... The new man at
the helm will start with a trip to Örebro, Sweden.
(MP)
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