Kraay radically changes his opinion on Ajax player

Hans Kraay junior laid into Marcos Leonardo on Goedemorgen Eredivisie. The analyst cannot understand why Ajax's Brazilian striker is still not fully match fit.

Leonardo came on with 15 minutes left against NEC (1-1). Kraay did not like what he saw from the substitute on Saturday, as he made clear on Sunday morning on ESPN.

''No matter how tired Tolu is, I would always leave him on. Because that Leonardo is dreadful,'' fumes the astonished Kraay. ''They paid twenty million euros for that boy, but how can you come on at Ajax and not be fit? That's unbelievable, isn't it? Truly unbelievable. It's the most beautiful profession on earth, so you have to be fit, don't you?'

This is not the first time Kraay has criticised Leonardo. After Ajax - PSV (1-3) at the start of September, the analyst also said last summer's multi-million signing was not fully fit.

Back in July, though, Kraay was still upbeat about Leonardo's arrival at Ajax. ''At the moment I am in Mexico with my wife, where I came across a few football lovers who support Al-Hilal and they are lyrical about Marcos Leonardo, Ajax's new striker. They say: he is not like Messi, but he is a magnet in the opposition penalty area,'' he told Voetbal International.

''So he does not smash them in from forty metres, does not beat seven opponents, but the goals he scores all still count for one. And these people also told me that Ajax are going to get an incredible amount of pleasure from this player,'' Kraay said a few months ago.

So far, Leonardo has played 343 minutes for Ajax across ten matches. The 23-year-old striker, who has to settle for a place behind Tolu, has scored twice.