Ajax’s nightmare season reached a new low on Sunday, as they were defeated 6-0 by archrivals Feyenoord in the Dutch “Klassieker”.
Feyenoord controlled the encounter in all aspects, leading 3-0 at halftime with to goals from Igor Paixao, Yankuba Minteh, and David Hancko, much to the joy of the home crowd at De Kuip.
The second half was a parade for Feyenoord, who appeared to be able to cut open the Ajax defence at will, with Paixao and Minteh each scoring twice, the latter with a wonderful curling strike.
Quinten Timber sealed the misery, and Feyenoord could have added a seventh goal, but it was ruled out for offside.
Feyenoord won by a record margin in the Dutch Klassieker, surpassing their previous record of 9-4 in 1964.
Ajax, the four-time European champions, have had a disastrous season both on and off the pitch.
They made their worst start to a Dutch top flight season, momentarily topping the Eredivisie table, before fans’ discontent erupted into violence.
Ajax, the club of Johan Cruyff, Marco van Basten, and Dennis Bergkamp, has recovered somewhat since those sad days, but it still ranks sixth in the Dutch first division, an uncommon position.
They are 31 points behind Eredivisie leaders PSV Eindhoven, and European football appears to be a distant dream for next season.
To make matters worse, the club disclosed two embarrassing financial mistakes this week.
On Tuesday, they announced the suspension of CEO and chairman Alex Kroes on suspicion of insider trading.
Kroes purchased around 17,000 shares a week before his appointment was announced on August 2, 2023.
On Friday, it was revealed that club chairman Michael van Praag, who had publicly chastised Kroes throughout the week, had “forgotten” to report his own ownership in the club to the appropriate authorities.
Feyenoord, on the other hand, completed an incredible double against their opponents, defeating them 4-0 away earlier this season.
They are second in the table, nine points behind PSV.