Ajax Move On from Ahmetcan Kaplan as NEC Signs Defender

Ajax are set to draw a line under the Ahmetcan Kaplan project. NEC have reached an agreement with the Amsterdam club for the defender, with the fee reported at around €2.5 million, according to Algemeen Dagblad club watcher Johan Inan.

For NEC, it’s a deal with real weight. Kaplan will sign a four-year contract in Nijmegen, tying him to the club until mid-2030. The Turk already knows the city, the stadium and the dressing room. He spent last season on loan there and barely put a foot wrong.

Thirty official matches, two goals, and a reputation quickly built as one of NEC’s most reliable performers. Kaplan didn’t just fill a gap; he anchored a back line that punched above its weight.

Ajax once saw something big in him too. They paid Trabzonspor €9.5 million in the summer of 2022 to bring in the left-footed centre-back. Two years on, his Ajax story is close to ending with just 25 official appearances to his name. A costly bet that never quite paid off in Amsterdam now turns into a cut-price sale inside the Eredivisie.

For Kaplan, though, the move feels less like a step down and more like a step into a team built around his strengths. He will line up again with compatriot Emre Mor, adding a familiar voice and face in a dressing room that already suited him.

NEC badly needed this. With Philippe Sandler sidelined for a long spell, the club were short of a commanding presence at the back. Kaplan’s permanent arrival plugs that hole and brings continuity to a side trying to keep its upward curve intact.

And there’s more on the line than just domestic stability. NEC still have their eyes fixed on the Champions League group stage. FK Bodø/Glimt stand between them and a place at Europe’s top table over two legs.

Kaplan arrived in the Netherlands as a big-money prospect for Ajax. He now stands in Nijmegen as a cornerstone of an ambitious NEC side, with Europe’s brightest lights still within reach.