History made as Jorrel Hato becomes youngest ever Ajax captain | OneFootball

Jorrel Hato has had quite the week, he received his first call-up to the Netherlands national team and captained Ajax for the first time. History was made on Sunday afternoon when Ajax faced Almere City at the Yanmar Stadion. In the 67th minute Ajax captain Steven Bergwijn was substituted for Chuba Akpom, which resulted in the captain’s armband being passed to 17-year-old Jorrel Hato. This made him the youngster player to ever captain Ajax.

The defender was born in Rotterdam in March 2006 and was brought up through the youth system of Sparta Rotterdam. Hato made the move from Rotterdam to Amsterdam in 2018 and he recently signed a new long-term contract at Ajax despite the interest of various clubs across Europe. Hato made his debut for Ajax’s first team in the KNVB Cup against Den Bosch in January 2023. A month later he made his debut in the Eredivisie when he came on as a substitute against SC Cambuur, making him the third youngster player to ever play for Ajax behind Ryan Gravenberch and Clarence Seedorf.

The youngster is tipped by many in the capital to have a bright future ahead of him, receiving the captain’s armband at only 17 years of age is a testament to the character of the defender and how highly his skills are regarded by those at Ajax. Is Hato the next young prospect to come out of the perpetually revolving door of Ajax’s well renowned youth system? Only time will tell but the defender is definitely one to keep an eye on.

GBeNeFN | Max Mumford