En route home after making his Champions League debut against Real Madrid Thulani Serero suffered an uncharacteristic attack of impatience.
“I was driving behind a truck and got frustrated because he was driving so slowly,” said Serero. “It was late and I just wanted to get home. By the time I saw the police car in front of the truck it was too late. They caught me at 135 kilometres in a 50 zone,” he recalled, with a mixture of sheepish regret and mischievous amusement.
His reward was a two-month licence suspension — all part of his acclimatisation to Dutch life. That moment aside, South Africa’s most talented footballer has barely put a foot wrong since arriving at Ajax Amsterdam in July.
“He was sensational in the beginning,” said Ajax assistant coach Hennie Spijkerman. “His movement, passing and technique were amazing. But that cost him a lot of energy, so his form dipped a bit in September. Then he got a couple of injuries. It’s a normal process of adaptation. But today in training, I saw the Serero of last season returning.”
It helps that 21-year-old Serero has been steeped in the Ajax philosophy since age 13, when he left Soweto for Cape Town. Blessed with hair-trigger speed of thought and foot, he is custom-engineered for the brisk attacking game favoured by Frank de Boer’s Eredivisie champions.
“The training he had under Foppe de Haan is exactly the same as ours,” said Spijkerman. “The difference is that the level of each player is higher here. In Cape Town he was technically by far the best player, but here he isn’t the best. He can become the best but it will take time. He has the patience, and often younger players don’t have that, even the Scandinavians, who come from a similar culture.”
It is a murky, drizzly day when we meet at Ajax’s De Toekomst training complex but Serero is chirpy after a good morning session. He has just moved into a flat of his own in Amstelveen, his Dutch lessons are progressing well and life is heel leuk — very cool.
In a few days Serero will host his Belgium-based compatriots Anele Ngcongca, Siboniso Gaxa and Daylon Claasen at his new place. And he has befriended Ajax teammates Vurnon Anita, Kenneth Vermeer and Lorenzo Ebecilio.
“But my old teammate Eyong Enoh has been the biggest support,” he said. “From my first day he’s been there for me, advising me on what to do.”
Serero is not alone in deferring to the Cameroonian, formerly of the Urban Warriors, an increasingly dominant holding midfielder who would fetch a tidy price in England or Spain.
Although the new Ajax board is committed to returning the club to Europe’s aristocracy, a policy of cashing in the finest young players remains in force. Hence it is likely that Danish playmaker Christian Eriksen will join one of the Manchester giants soon — an exit that would brighten Serero’s prospects of regular starting action.
“I’m ready for the fight,” said Serero. “I came into the team knowing there were very good players, like Eriksen and Siem de Jong, in my position. There were other options, but I chose Ajax because I like competition.”
Both Serero and Spijkerman agree that No 10 is his ideal role but he could make more headway as a challenger to Derk Boerrigter on the left wing.
Not that Serero is one to dilute his ambitions on command: there is will aplenty behind his soft voice and demeanour. “When Foppe arrived, he wanted me to play as a central midfielder,” he said. “But I went to him and said I didn’t want to do that, I wanted to be a No 10. So we had a bit of an argument. He gave me a chance but he told me a good No 10 has to score 10 or 12 goals a season. I missed a lot of chances last season, but I did take No 11.”
Serero has yet to score in competitive action this term and Ajax fans await repeats of that scorcher against Santos, a strike they have savoured on YouTube.
“I don’t like shooting,” admitted Serero. “I don’t know why. It’s one aspect I need to improve. I really like passing, but sometimes I need to take the initiative.”
It is a trait he shares with Ajax alumnus Steven Pienaar, whose career has been limited by his modest scoring rate. But De Haan believes Serero can exceed Pienaar, and Spijkerman agrees.
“He has the mentality, pace and technique to be a top player here, and later on at a bigger club. His first touch is outstanding,” said Spijkerman.
“He’s able to delay defenders by feinting to move one way before receiving the ball then, with his first touch, he moves the other way. That’s a quality you find with the top players in Europe, with the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo.”
The road ahead is not yet open for Serero and his rivals will prove harder to overtake than law-abiding Dutch trucks. Fortunately, there are no speed limits in football.