Calvin Bassey's nightmare start to his career at Ajax has continued after he was slapped with a two-game ban for getting sent off on his debut.
The former Rangers hero completed a £19 million move to the Amsterdam giants last month and made his bow as a sub in the Johan Cruyff Shield defeat to PSV Eindhoven. He lasted just 14 minutes before he was shown a red card as Ajax slumped to a shock defeat.
The next day, Bassey played in a friendly for Ajax reserves against Almere City and was short with a passback which almost cost them a goal in a 1-1 draw before he was subbed. And he will be forced to miss Ajax's first couple of matches in the Eredivisie which starts this weekend, after the KNVB handed him a three-match ban, although one of those is suspended. He will miss games against Fortuna Sittard and Groningen.
However, Dutch legend Arnold Muhren has backed the former Ibrox star to be a big success despite the disappointing start to his career in the Netherlands. Ajax great Muhren - who won three European trophies with the club, as well as starring for Manchester United and Ipswich Town - said: "Although Calvin Bassey was sent off, in his short time on the pitch I saw encouraging sights.
"He organises and points, which is a good sign. He shows that he dares to play football and that is what Ajax is asking. He is physically strong and I suspect good in the air too.
"Obviously, I can't judge him based on that 14 minutes until he got a red card. But I found it remarkable that he started to play left back when he came on the field and that Daley Blind remained in the centre.
"I think Bassey has mostly played central at Rangers and when he played in that friendly against Almere City, he was in the heart of the defence. So I think that is definitely his best position."
Ajax's domestic rivals PSV could find themselves heading to Glasgow soon enough. The draw for the playoff round of the Champions League takes place today with the Eindhoven outfit one potential opponent for the Gers.
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