Early in the second half at the Johan Cruyff Arena on Sunday, the vibes were very Amsterdam. Very Ajax. Every single word of Three Little Birds was being sung in the tribunes. And then, Sparta Rotterdam scored and the crowd went wild. Maybe every little thing really is gonna be all right.
Jordan Henderson had given the Amsterdammers a half-time lead against Twente, but just before that Ivan Perisic put PSV 1-0 against Sparta, and the Eindhoven club’s one-point lead at the top of the Eredivisie still held. Gijvai Zechiel’s goal swung the title race back to the Dutch capital.
It did not last. Just six minutes later former Newcastle United flop Luuk de Jong equalised. Malik Tillman, once of Rangers, sealed PSV’s 3-1 win with six minutes to go. Despite Wout Weghorst’s late second for Ajax, the damage was. From being nine points ahead with five games remaining, Ajax threw it away.
'It's a big shift in a short space of time'
– Jordan Henderson –
— AFC Ajax (@AFCAjax) May 10, 2025
What happened after Ajax beat PSV 2-0 in Eindhoven on 30 March is the stuff of infamy. A 4-0 defeat at home to Utrecht preceded a 1-1 draw at home to Sparta.
Then came disaster. Ajax had produced a 19-minute video with captain Henderson before their clash with NEC Nijmegen on 11 May. It is the sort of thing Ajax do very well. Hiring out the exclusive Soho House members’ club and hotel and having Henderson talk eloquently about his career, his drive, hugging his father, who had cancer diagnosed, after the 2019 Champions League final. Even his angry reaction to journalists asking him about a reported January move to Monaco.
Earlier, PSV had travelled to Feyenoord, and the home side, now coached by Robin van Persie, took a 2-0 lead. Ajacieden watching outside the Arena before their game kicked off a couple of hours later were singing “Kampioenen ole ole” as their greatest rivals from Rotterdam were doing them a favour.
But PSV fought back. Perisic pulled one back five minutes into the second half and then Noa Lang, the former Ajax enfant terrible, scored twice as PSV completed a stunning comeback to keep their apparently slim title hopes alive. His raucous celebration while being pelted with abuse and more from the home fans is one of the images of the season.
In Amsterdam, Henderson more than played his part as a shellshocked Ajax lost 3-0 to NEC. The England midfielder played Basar Onal onside. The NEC sub’s shot was saved by fortysomething Ajax keeper Remko Pasveer, but Brayann Pereira stuck the rebound past Henderson with 25 minutes remaining.
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And Henderson was left scratching and shaking his head as he talked to match officials as they conceded an equaliser at Groningen on Wednesday with the last action of the game. Pain turned to joy for PSV fans watching on their phones with their 4-1 win over Heracles Almelo already over.
The collapse, completed after PSV’s win over Sparta on Sunday, was not all Henderson’s fault, but in a country where directness is a virtue there was one subject not broached in his video – Saudi Arabia. Enough has been said about Henderson’s move to Saudi, but it is something he should have addressed after moving to the city that is home of the first monument in the world to commemorate gays and lesbians who were killed by the Nazi regime. Perhaps the collapse was written in the stars, with Henderson now brandishing the captain’s armband.
He is still under contract until the summer of 2027, but he won’t be there with coach Francesco Farioli, who resigned on Monday. The Italian cited “differences in the principles and foundations of the project. In the same press release, Ajax technical director Alex Kroes said: “I find this incredibly disappointing”. With good reason, as Farioli leaves just one year into a three-year deal.
So what next? Kroes said on Monday that Erik ten Hag is in the frame for a potential return to Ajax.
“Erik ten Hag has been on the list for a long time,” Kroes told Dutch state broadcaster NOS. “He is well-known, he has done a fantastic job here. I spoke to him briefly yesterday. He was in the Arena as a spectator.”
Ten Hag has been out of work since being sacked by Manchester United last October, after leaving Amsterdam for Old Trafford in 2022.
His return will be welcomed after leading Ajax to three titles and that Champions League semi-final run in 2019, knocking Real Madrid and Juventus out along the way. As they sing in Amsterdam, even during a seismic bottle job, don’t worry about a thing.
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