FC Twente fighting for Eljero Elia

Eddy van der Ley & Maarten Wijffels
Wednesday 17 December 2008

(AD) - The Board of Directors of FC Twente are planning to cooperate on a transfer of Eljero Elia to Ajax Amsterdam.

The Amsterdam club are looking into the possibilities to enroll the forward during the coming transfer window.

Just like they did on Robbie Wielaert the club from Enschede are saying they will not let them go under any circumstances.

Next month they plan to extend his current contract.

21-Year-old Elia seems the most wanted transfer object in the Eredivisie during the winter break.

And all that only 1½ years after Twente picked up the player at FC Den Haag where he was a drowning bird.

Ajax are not negotiating directly with Twente.

Coach Marco van Basten did have a short orientation chat with the player, but his remark that Twente gave him permission for that did not go down well in Enschede.

"I have not been in contact with Ajax so how can I have given permission?" says Twente chairman Joop Munsterman.

Twente are hoping to work out a contract extension with Elia next month and one of the new conditions would be a clause on a 'realistic transfer fee'.

It is a tested strategy in the fight against the richer clubs.

Last summer Twente managed to extend the contract of Marko Arnautovic when we was sought after by Feyenoord, as they did earlier with Orlando Engelaar and Karim El Ahmadi.

Both midfielders were later sold for 5 million to Schalke 04 and Feyenoord.

For Elia, who's contract expires in 2010 FC Twente can ask what they want at the moment.

Chairman Munsterman will not shy away from asking an extremely high fee.

"We want to keep this squad together at all costs. We are doing well and we don't want any disturbance on the line. Elia has emerged to be a very important player who can be of great value to us after the winter break."

Van Basten indicated yesterday that he understands it will not be easy to land Elia.

"We are considering what to do. Eljero is a very interesting player for us. But when Twente want 15 million the deal is definitely off."

Elia himself is certainly charmed by the interest of Ajax, the club who discarded him as a teenager.

But it is unlikely that he will enforce his departure via arbitration.

Ajax have also said not to make use of that ultimate step.

Elia says he is feeling fine at FC Twente, both on and off the pitch.

The man from Den Haag doesn't easily cast aside the fact that it was Twente who picked him up and gave him the chance to develop into the player he is now.

With that in mind he says he will respect the position of FC Twente.

"Every player is ambitious, but for me it is no problem at all t stay in Enschede. Besides great things are bound to happen here after the winter break."

Nevertheless the interest of his former club is tempting.

When Elia decides not extend his contract with FC Twente a move to Ajax is still an option for next summer.

Then Twente will certainly want to sell him to prevent him from walking out the gate as a free agent a year later.

In the shadow of the Elia matter there is also still Ajax' interest in Twente defender Robbie Wielaert.

Ajax tried to land him last summer, but could not get around his 5 million euro transfer fee.

One of these days Wielaert will sign a new contract with in it a clause for a limited transfer fee of 3 million.

That of course makes him an interesting target for Ajax.