An embarrassing incident has left footballing giant Ajax red-faced, as Director of football Marc Overmars was forced to resign from his position at the club. His decision came as a massive shock to the football fraternity, as evidence emerged that he had been sending compromising photographs to female employees and exhibited “stalking-like” behaviour, which led him to his decision to leave the club.
The former Ajax, Arsenal and Barcelona striker was a key official at the Amsterdam club after joining in 2012. he has been known to have handled the footballing side of things at Ajax to perfection, as the Dutch giants heartbreakingly missed out on reaching the UEFA Champions League final back in 2019.
Overmars, along with veteran goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar and first-team manager Erik ten Hag, were combinedly responsible for Ajax’s recent rise, as they had established a perfect system at the Amsterdam-based club.
The 48-year-old is also accused of sending inappropriate text messages to female co-workers and has allegedly sent photographs of himself in compromising situations to those female colleagues against their will, something that was made public on the popular Dutch show, The Voice of Holland. The former player has not responded to any of the allegations levelled against him, and neither have Ajax issued an official statement regarding the matter.
The 1994/95 Champions League winner did release a statement announcing his decision to resign from his role at Ajax, which read:
“I am ashamed. Last week I was confronted with reports about my behaviour. And how this has come across to others. Unfortunately, I didn’t realize that I had crossed boundaries with this, but that became clear to me these days. As a result, I suddenly felt enormous pressure.”
He also requested the media to leave him and his family alone. The incident has drawn huge criticism online, and the club has been slammed by many fans for their inability to act upon the situation sooner. The situation also leaves an air of uncertainty around the futures of CEO van der Sar and head coach ten Hag.
The tactician was a close confidante of Overmars and quite recently called him a “rare friend’. Some sources have also reported that his departure could spell the end of ten Hag’s fruitful tenure at Ajax, and that he would leave the club in the summer.
Ajax sponsor Ziggo has also issued a statement expressing their solidarity with the female employees who came forward with evidence against Overmars. However, they have not made any statements about their former colleague’s actions or their deal with the Dutch club.
