Ten Cate takes command at Ajax

Henk ten Cate has been appointed as the new coach of AFC Ajax days after helping lead FC Barcelona to victory in the UEFA Champions League final.

Two-year contract
The 51-year-old has been working as Frank Rijkaard's assistant at the Camp Nou since the 2003/04 season, winning two Spanish titles and the European Champion Clubs' Cup, but has now signed a two-year contract with Amsterdam giants Ajax, replacing Danny Blind, who was dismissed last week. Amsterdam-born Ten Cate earned high praise as a coach after leading unfancied NAC Breda into the UEFA Cup after a fourth-placed finish in the Eredivisie in 2002/03. It was the first time in 30 years that the club had qualified for a European competition.

Attractive football
Earlier, he had guided BV Vitesse to a third-placed finish in the Dutch league, playing an attractive brand of football - something that the Ajax directors are keen to see at the Amsterdam ArenA next season. He also won the Hungarian Cup in 2000 during a spell in charge of MTK Hungária FC. While Blind won the Dutch Cup with AFC Ajax this season and led them into the UEFA Champions League via the end-of-season play-offs after a fourth-placed finish in the Eredivisie, the club were disappointed with the club's failure to make progress on the pitch.

New signings
Former Sparta Rotterdam coach Ten Cate will be able to count on two new signings, forward Kenneth Perez and defender Jaap Stam, next season, but will have to fill the gaps left by the departing Nourdin Boukhari, Hatem Trabelsi, Yannis Anastasiou, Hans Vonk, Steven Pienaar, Juanfran and captain Tomás Galásek.