Benfica have refused to loan Ola John to Ajax because of injuries, meaning the Amsterdam club will now turn their attentions to Zakaria Labyad.

  • By Michael Bell
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john aAjax want to add two attacking players before the window slams shut on Monday night, with one being Lerin Duarte from Heracles, while they also want to bring in a winger.

Ola John was the preferred choice, as Ajax looked to do a loan deal, for the young Dutchman, who has been on the fringes of the Benfica squad so far this season.

However the Portuguese club has suffered injuries to key members of their squad, and Ajax director Marc Overmars confirmed that Benfica would not allow John to leave.

Overmars told Algameen Dagblad, “Benfica has blocked due to two major injuries in the selection.”

According to De Telegraaf, Ajax will now turn their attention to Sporting Lisbon midfielder Zakaria Labyad, as they look to find Christian Eriksen’s replacement.

The 20 year old, who left PSV for Sporting last summer, has his heart set on a move back to the Eredivisie after a poor spell in Sporting Lisbon that has stunted his development.

PSV, Feyenoord, and Vitesse have all been linked with moves for Labyad, but Ajax are not the only realistic option.




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