Ajax Urged to Pursue FC Utrecht‘s Souffian El Karouani in January
amsterdam, Netherlands – Ajax technical director Alex Kroes has been directly urged to sign FC Utrecht left-back Souffian El Karouani in the upcoming winter transfer window, according to a new column by Het Parool‘s Henk Spaan.
Spaan highlights Ajax’s need for depth at the left-back position, currently held by Owen Wijndal, who has the confidence of head coach John Heitinga. He argues that El Karouani represents a cost-effective solution, as his contract expires at the end of the season, meaning a transfer fee woudl be considerably lower then the €12 million valuation suggested by Transferwaarde.
“I don’t think El Karouani has a club yet,” Spaan writes.”Tho, his contract expires at the end of the season, which means that he can never cost the 12 million that Transferwaarde indicates during the winter break.”
Spaan further emphasizes El Karouani’s potential, noting a background as a youth midfielder-a shift reportedly forced upon him by a previous club, NEC, due to competition for the number six position. He directly addresses kroes,stating,”Someone emailed me that Souffian was always a midfielder in youth,but that NEC put him back against his will as Proper was at number six. el Karouani played another excellent match against NEC on Sunday. Then buy that guy, Alex Kroes.”
The 25-year-old Morocco international has been in impressive form this season, contributing to eight goals in eleven Eredivisie matches – scoring twice and providing six assists.
