The dead have entered ajax amsterdam, which is terrible…
This weekend, Amsterdam football team Ajax will have various opportunities to reflect on Bennie Muller’s death. The squad revealed this week that a former player and member of the Dutch men’s national team had died at the age of 85.
The men’s, women’s, and Jong Ajax teams will all play football with special armbands to celebrate the Amsterdammer. There will also be a moment of silence before Sunday’s Eredivisie match between Ajax and RKC Waalwijk.
The women’s team faces Excelsior on Saturday. Jong Ajax will face Willem II in the Eerste Divisie on Friday.
Muller died earlier this week, at the age of 85. The midfielder made an impression at Ajax in the 1960s. From 1958 until 1970, he appeared in 426 official matches for Ajax 1, winning five national titles and three Dutch cups. He also represented Oranje in 43 international matches.
Muller made his Ajax debut against MVV Maastricht in 1958. The midfielder was diminutive in stature, but technically adept and capable of hitting a powerful shot. He became a permanent presence, laying the groundwork for the team that dominated Europe and captivated football fans all over the world in the early 1970s.
His first personal moment of glory came on May 26, 1960, during an Eredivisie match between Ajax and Feyenoord. The play-off was scheduled at the end of the season since both teams were tied on 50 points at the top of the table. Ajax won the national championship with a 5-1 win. “Two years ago I was still a ball boy, now I’m a champion,” he wrote in an article on the Ajax website.
Muller was demoted to the bench by famed Total Football coach Rinus Michels after Ajax lost the 1969 European Cup final 4-1 to AC Milan. In 1970, he left for old Scheveningen team Holland Sport, having been extremely unhappy.
After retiring from football, Muller opened a cigar shop on Amsterdam’s Haarlemmerstraat. He remained an ardent Ajax fan and witnessed his son, Danny Muller, play on the Ajax youth squad.
