This Sunday, Kenneth Taylor’s agent, Guido Albers, gave an interview to the program Goedemorgen Eredivisie on Dutch broadcaster ESPN, where he confirmed that the midfielder had received an offer from FC Porto.
"Wolverhampton initially offered more than 30 million euros. That set the benchmark. It was important for Ajax to reach that amount, and it haunted me all summer," the agent explained, adding that the move to the Premier League didn’t happen because the midfielder didn’t see it as the right destination, unlike when he was approached by FC Porto.
"However, Ajax saw FC Porto as something like a third-world club, so they didn’t want to do business with them from a financial standpoint. They didn’t think they could be trusted, so the transfer fell through at the last minute," said Guido Albers.
"The contracts were almost finalized. FC Porto’s last offer was 22 million euros, but Ajax didn’t think that was enough," the agent revealed.
According to Guido Albers, Kenneth Taylor was excited about the chance to work again with Francesco Farioli, but Ajax was not open to negotiating with the Dragons.
The midfielder stayed at Ajax, making 19 official appearances, scoring two goals and providing four assists, before now leaving the Dutch club for Lazio in a deal worth 17 million euros, five million less than the offer from FC Porto, as revealed by his agent.
"They were being inflexible with a player who came through their own academy. I had an issue with that. It would have been a good example of why we should cooperate (...). Ajax had already indicated they would cooperate in the winter transfer window, and they kept their word," said Guido Albers.
