Parachuting into the Netherlands after his stint with Israeli outfit Hapoel Tel Aviv was sabotaged by the outbreak of war with Hamas, Valkanis is relishing the challenge of helping the Amsterdam club climb off the foot of the table after a run of 10 games in all competitions without a win.
The pair previously worked together at Melbourne City, PEC Zwolle and most recently Greece, with Valkanis riding shotgun before striking out on his own at Belgium outfit Eupen followed by his short-lived Hapoel adventure.
Speaking after his first training session with Ajax, who face Garang Kuol’s FC Voldenam this weekend, Valkanis expressed a sense of wonder at winding up at one of Europe’s most iconic clubs, winners of 28 league titles and the former home of football royalty like Johan Cruyff, Marco van Basten and Dennis Bergkamp.
“Being at a club like this you feel blessed,” Valkanis told FTBL. “It’s something you can one day talk about with your grandkids.
“I’m so grateful for this opportunity – having worked in Holland with John in 2018 (PEC Zwolle) I always hoped I’d come back one day. When I got the call I was rapt. This is a huge club and a great place to work.”
Valkanis is convinced Ajax, two points adrift at the bottom, will quickly recapture their mojo as he and van’t Schip embark on their caretaker tenure until the end of the season.
“It’s a test and one we’re embracing – the belief is, with the group of players we have, it’s only a matter of some extra hard work and they’ll rebound and be back to where they should be,” he added.
“Everybody expects to see Ajax near the top but these things happen in football, but we’re only eight games into the season and things can be rectified.
“Having worked with the players there’s more than enough quality to do that, all that’s lacking is a bit of confidence.
“The club needs stability and the players need a consistent message – now somebody like Jon has come in, a former Ajax player and captain, he knows what it means and what’s required to get everybody pulling in the right direction so the club can find its identity again.
“Okay, we’re not at the right end of the table but the way we’re looking at it the only way is up.”
There’s an element of bitter sweet for Valkanis, who was revelling in his head coaching role in Israel before circumstances intervened and he was forced to hurriedly exit the country..
“We were on the right path and I was sad to leave,” he said. “I was told I had to get out and back to safety,” he explained.
“I really miss the players – I was a bit of a father figure to them and I just hope things resolve quickly and everybody can resume a normal life and do what they love again.
“Obviously things became very uncertain there over with when the league will resume due to the conflict, and then this opportunity came up. Sometimes the universe works in mysterious ways.
“There was a lot of Dutch influence around me 13 years ago when I was coaching youth football in Australia.
“Han Berger was technical director at Football Australia and like a mentor me, and I also worked under Rini Coolen at Adelaide United and then obviously John. I’ve always believed in the Dutch way of playing.
