Former Netherlands star, Wesley Sneijder, has called on Ajax manager Alfred Schreuder to bench Nigeria international Calvin Bassey following a poor run of form.
Bassey has been under scathing criticisms for his poor performances since arriving at Ajax from Glasgow Rangers for a club-record €23m in the summer.
“You have Bassey who can’t build up, (Jurien) Timber who isn’t doing well and then you don’t have a controlling midfielder who wants to build up. Then it becomes quite difficult in the build-up and you don’t get to play football,” Dutch media outlet Soccernews quoted Sneijder as saying.
The former Ajax playmaker believes Edson Álvarez is better than Bassey in the defensive role and urged Schreuder to deploy him in that position.
“You must have someone who can play the ball between the lines at (Steven) Berghuis. I might put him on the defensive.
“Take Bassey out and put Álvarez back in line. Defending is all Álvarez can do. He can be very important for Ajax one line back.
“I’m not happy about Bassey in general, the defenders at Ajax can play football well. That has always been a principle. I think he’s a bad defender and he can’t play football very well. It’s pretty silly that you can’t play football well when you play at Ajax.”
Despite the criticisms, the 22-year-old defender has been a key figure in Schreuder’s team, making 12 appearances and scoring one goal with two assists in the Eredivisie.
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