Marc Overmars is being linked with a role at Newcastle having impressed as Ajax’s director of football but the club’s manager, Erik ten Hag, has hit back at speculation
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Ajax boss Erik ten Hag has claimed its “definitely not the time” for director of football Marc Overmars to leave for Newcastle.
The Magpies were taken over a fortnight ago by a Saudi-led consortium and are set to showcase their immense wealth.
Steve Bruce’s sacking on Wednesday means Newcastle are looking for a new manager but they also want to appoint the right men outside of the dugout.
Overmars’ work at Ajax has attracted attention from around Europe with the Amsterdam outfit continuing to punch above their weight.
Ten Hag led them to the Champions League semi-finals in 2019 and the Dutch club have benefited from shrewd recruitment and an impressive youth policy.
Newcastle have been linked with the former Arsenal and Barcelona star, but the Ajax boss insists his colleague is still very much involved in his role at the Amsterdam Arena.
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He said: “ The positional of technical director is one for the long term. Marc set things in motion a few years ago.
“He did this from a certain vision, he introduced structure and managed. It’s started to grow and I don’t think the process is over yet.
“Marc hasn’t informed me [about the Newcastle interest]. I don’t think he’s withholding anything from me either.
“I’m not working on [going to Newcastle] and now is definitely not the time.”
Overmars has also been linked with taking up the same role at his former club in north London.
Edu is currently crucial in Arsenal’s transfer business but the Dutchman has supposedly told former teammate Ray Parlour he would love the chance to address the issues at the Emirates.
Meanwhile, Newcastle’s managerial search goes on, with Graeme Jones taking caretaker charge this weekend.
The likes of Paulo Fonseca, Eddie Howe and Lucien Favre have all been linked with the St James’ Park vacancy.
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Minority shareholder Amanda Staveley has spoken about the new owners’ plans for the team.
She told Sky Sports : “We’re really excited about strengthening the squad, but we have to work within Financial Fair Play and make sure this is done over a longer term.
“But you can know and be reassured that we want to invest at every level. We want to get the best squad we possibly can.
“Everybody talks about it [big-name players], but what you need is a team that works well together. That’s also just as important.”
