“It’s not nice how Ajax treated me.”

Sunday February 21, 2021 07:32• Daniel Cabot Kerkdijk • Last updated: 08:15

Ajax said goodbye to Hassan Pandey this month. The winger striker was hired for a year and a half to NK Istra, who has an option to purchase. Pandey doesn’t think he has a future in Amsterdam. “Honestly, I don’t know. I haven’t spoken to them. But the way things are going now, I think Ajax no longer sees a future in me. I wasn’t expecting them to say anything in advance,” he acknowledged the million dollar purchase in a conversation with Ajax Showtime. Pandey is slightly disappointed with the way Ajax has been treated.

The story is well known: Pandey came from KV Mechelen for € 8.25 million in the summer of 2018 and in preparation for his debut season, Pandey suffered a serious knee injury. After his rehab, which lasted more than a year, he played exclusively on behalf of Young Ajax in the Kitchen Champion division. FC Thun lease in Switzerland for a year and a half for half a year only. Until hiring him to NK Istra, he played four matches with Young Ajax, including a red card in his last appearance.

In Ajax, Pandey still has a contract until mid-2023 and in principle he will return to the Netherlands a year earlier, unless the low-lying Croatian traveler is given the option to purchase. “You never know. I still have a contract with Ajax. I just have to work hard for my future. Be it in Ajax or another club. Maybe I will return to Ajax and get a chance. Just: This is not my expectation, you know?” I don’t think it was a mistake to choose Ajax. It is a way in my life. “

“If I had picked another team, I would have been worse off. For me, that’s more of an experience.” However, Pandey looks back with mixed feelings about the opportunities presented to him. “That injury took a lot of time. The problem is Ajax, not me. After I recovered, they didn’t help me get back into play. I didn’t have a chance to show myself. This is not my fault,” confirms the striker, who this year also received attention from Deportivo Alaves and clubs from LaLiga2 and France. NK chose Istra because he wanted to be sure of when to play.

After his return from Switzerland, Pandey spoke to director Marc Overmars about his future. He soon realized that he did not want to show himself only with the second team. But even training with the first was not possible for the Burkini. “I have no idea why. They didn’t tell me. They didn’t help me get back to my level. After my injury, Ajax took my things from the first team locker room. They moved my things to the U21 team dressing room.”

“I have no idea why they are doing this.” Pandey never received an answer to his questions and totally wanted to leave. “I kept getting the same answer: There is no reason.” So leaving was Pandy’s only option. “I didn’t like the way they treated me. If I had stayed, I would have felt more frustrated.”