Hakim Ziyech sheds tears as Ajax bids him an emotional farewell as he leaves for Chelsea
The new Chelsea lad shed tears while Ajax was bidding him farewell in a very emotional sendoff ceremony as he leaves the club for Chelsea. It was in mid-February that the Stamford Bridge outfit announced that they’ve reached an agreement with the Dutch club and the player to bring the 27 year old to Chelsea in July in a deal that is worth £33.3million, making him the first signing by Frank Lampard since he took over at the club in the summer of 2019. However, with the declaration of the Dutch Eredivisie division null and void due to the current health crisis in the world, Ziyech lost the chance to enjoy the sensational sendoff that normally accompanies such moves at the end of the season. In place of this, the club decided to give him a dramatic farewell arrangement, which riled up some emotions. Once the season restarts, the Chelsea players will continue their fight for a top 4 spot, and odds are in their favour. If you want to place a bet on it, maxfreebets.co.uk has prepared a list of free bets for you that you can use on most betting sites.
The young lad was taken to the Tuschinski theatre in Amsterdam where a set of clips and messages were shown to him, and in the process, he admitted that leaving Ajax without a proper goodbye is breaking his heart.
In his words, it’s somehow strange. You are aware that everything is winding up, but it’s, you know……..to end this chapter this way is a very strange one. When he was questioned on whether he ever envisaged leaving the club in this fashion, his answer was an emphatic no. He admitted that he is glad that he is taking the next step but ending it this way was never his expectation. For him, it gives a feeling of someone who failed his exams. It stripes them of every power. They get that feeling that the season did not end successfully.
Now, emotions went up when the interviewer told Ziyech that if the season was to end the normal way, he would have been substituted in the final game of the season to a standing ovation from the fans. To this, he answered that it’s the perfect end that everyone wants, but that he is unfortunate not to get that. Then they opened most of the messages sent to him by his present and past teammates at Ajax, where they wished him luck in his new sojourn at Chelsea, which includes a video clip from his now rival at Tottenham, Davinson Sanchez.
The captain of the club, Daley Blind in his own message told him that he enjoyed playing on the same pitch with him and also enjoyed his brilliance. He went ahead to say that he will keep enjoying him and following him while he is at Chelsea, and that they will meet again. To this message, Ziyech replied, beautiful, beautiful.
However, he could not hold the tears when the message from her mother was brought up on the screen, and it was rightfully the final message. In the message the Moroccan’s mother said that she is really happy for her son on the fact that he will move to London. She went ahead to admonish him to do his best, to take good care, and to always behave like a gentleman. She ended the message by telling him that she loves him and that she is so proud of him, concluding by wishing him good luck.
With this message, tears rolled down his cheeks, but he had to be excused for some moments to console him and also compose him. After that, he now said that, of course he knows why he is doing it; it’s actually because of the words that normally come from the mother. He agreed that his mother is a very proud woman. He went ahead to say that he can sense the feeling of pride in his mum, even though she tries not to express it much, taking into consideration what she had suffered in the past.
Ziyech told a little family history back there about how his mum took care of 8 or 9 kids at a very young age, lost the husband while she was young, and was left to suffer it all alone out there. For Ziyech, he is doing it all for her. Though she is in football because he loves the sport, it’s all for her mother. He said that he would have left football a long time ago, if not for her mother.
When he was queried on how best he would remember his time at Ajax, Ziyech replied that it’s all about proud and warm feelings. He concluded by saying that the most important of them all is the feeling that he is always welcome at Ajax.
