Potter to Man Utd HEATS UP as ex-Chelsea boss rejects Ajax

Robin Bairner

26 Apr 2024 02:40 CDT
3 min read

Graham Potter, Ajax, Deniz Undav — © IMAGO/FootballTransfers

Graham Potter has turned down the opportunity to become Ajax head coach, keeping the possibility that he is Manchester United’s next manager alive.

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Potter has turned down an initial offer from Ajax, with Algemeen Dagblad reporting that the former Chelsea boss did not agree with the financial conditions of the offer.

The Englishman has long been considered the favourite to succeed John van 't Schip at Ajax, but the prospect of the former Brighton boss joining countryman Jordan Henderson at the Eredivisie side appears to be decreasing.

On the other hand, Potter remains one of the names in the frame for the Man Utd job should Erik ten Hag be fired, as expected, at the end of the season. He is known to be a favourite of new minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his Ineos team.

Why did Potter reject Ajax?

"The reason for the 48-year-old Potter to immediately reject that first offer is that Ajax did not come close to the salary he had in mind," writes Johan Inan.

Potter earned an annual salary of €12 million during his time at Chelsea. Although Potter does not ask for such an amount from Ajax, the coach expected more.

"This means that the cost-cutting top club will have to stretch much further to recruit the top candidate for the coaching post," Inan added.

Although Ajax and Potter are still far apart financially, the trainer likes the sporting project in Amsterdam.

The Englishman knows that Ajax will have to be rebuilt and agrees with the club's plans. The coach spoke with technical advisor Louis van Gaal about a possible switch and started to like the job more and more. The fact that Potter rejected the offer is a major setback for Ajax.

There is a good chance that Ajax will now look further than just Potter. Now that the season is almost over, the search for a new coach is slowly but surely becoming more urgent.

Previously, they had studied the possibility of Xavi Hernandez, but he elected to remain with Barcelona.