Arokodare excited to join Ajax after surprising offer

Super Eagles striker Tolu Arokodare has said he thought his agent was joking when he first heard about Ajax’s interest. He called his move to the Dutch team a dream he never thought would come true.

The 25-year-old completed a season-long loan from Wolverhampton Wanderers to Ajax on Wednesday. Ajax has the option to make the transfer permanent next summer for about £17 million.

After finalizing his move, Arokodare spoke to Ajax’s official website. He could not hide his joy about joining such a big club in Europe.

“I could never have imagined that I would play here,” Arokodare said. “Not because I do not want to, but because everyone knows this club. In Nigeria, no one watches the Eredivisie, but everyone knows Ajax.”

He shared that he initially doubted the offer because of Ajax's reputation.

“When my agent said Ajax were interested, I thought he was joking. As I said, I never expected this. I immediately thought: I want this. It is the biggest club in the Netherlands and one of the biggest in Europe.”

Arokodare will wear the famous No. 99 shirt during his time with the four-time European champions. This move gives him a chance to revive his career after an up-and-down first season in the Premier League with Wolverhampton.

He joined Wolves from Belgian side Genk for £24 million last summer. He played 38 times across all competitions, scoring six goals. Despite his efforts, there was a lot of talk about his future during the transfer window. Serie A side Fiorentina was among the clubs interested in him.

His time at Molineux became controversial earlier this month. Reports claimed he refused to leave the training pitch when told he would no longer train with the first team. It was also said that added security measures were put in place at the club’s training ground to avoid more incidents.

Arokodare quickly denied those claims on social media, calling the reports false. When he confirmed his loan move, Wolves only released a short statement without comments from their head coach or sporting director.

This transfer comes after Arokodare started just one of Wolves’ last 10 Premier League matches last season. That further raised hopes he would find regular first-team football elsewhere.

With this move, Arokodare becomes the eighth Nigerian footballer to play for Ajax. He joins a notable list of Nigerians who have worn the club's red-and-white jersey.

Nigerian legends Finidi George and Nwankwo Kanu were the first, both joining the club in 1993 and having very successful careers there. More recently, Super Eagles defender Calvin Bassey played for Ajax before Arokodare’s arrival.

Arokodare now hopes to follow in the footsteps of Finidi and Kanu by making a big impact at one of Europe’s top clubs.

Although Ajax will play against Serbian side FK Vojvodina in the UEFA Conference League on Thursday, Arokodare will not make his debut in that match. The Dutch club leads the second leg with a strong 4-1 advantage from the first match, but the Nigerian cannot play.

Instead, Arokodare will focus on settling into his new home and aims to start a successful chapter in Amsterdam. He is looking forward to the chance of securing a permanent move next summer.