Martin Jol has left Ajax by mutual consent to add to speculation that he could be set to become the next manager at Newcastle.
Dutchman quits Ajax on the same day as Hughton sacking
Martin Jol has left Ajax by mutual consent to add to speculation that he could be set to become the next manager at Newcastle.
The former Tottenham boss, who only took up the Ajax position in May 2009, has claimed that expectations were too high at the Amsterdam ArenA.
Jol is now thought to be a leading contender for the vacant manager's job at Newcastle, where his former Spurs assistant, Chris Hughton, was sacked on Monday afternoon.
Ajax lie fourth in the Eredivisie table, five points off leaders PSV Eindhoven, but the Dutchman decided to walk away.
Jol said: "With pain in my heart I say goodbye to this wonderful club.
"We started something last summer that I would have finished. But I have come to realise that the expectations after last season were too high. We cannot meet such expectations.
Criticism
"The amount of criticism that the club has had to endure daily has led to unrest in the club and among players. I take this decision consciously before AC Milan v Ajax (in the UEFA Champions League) is played (on Wednesday).
"The coming weeks are very important and I sincerely hope that something happens in the squad to make it in the short term a winning team."
Jol, who has also managed Hamburg, Roda JC and RKC Waalwijk, was a target of Fulham in the summer, but he decided not to leave Ajax before the Craven Cottage side appointed Mark Hughes.
However, the 54-year-old's sudden availability has led to inevitable links with Newcastle in the wake of the dismissal of Hughton, which has seen Peter Beardsley placed in charge on a temporary basis.
The St James' Park club's owner, Mike Ashley, has said that he is looking for a manager with experience in order to take the Premier League outfit forward in the future.
Former West Ham, Charlton and Southampton boss Alan Pardew has also been strongly linked with Newcastle.
Director Rik van den Boog told Ajax's
official website of Jol: "What it happening today does not detract from the great season we experienced last year. The team reached the group stage of the Champions League. That was very important to us all. He has developed many players.
"Many games we won in spectacular fashion, scoring lots of goals and conceding few."
