The first; where and when did the newly crowned jubilarian make his debut again?
Josip Šutalo signed a five-year contract with Ajax in the summer of 2023. The Croatian arrived from Dinamo Zagreb, where he had previously come through the youth academy. On 3 September 2023, Šutalo made his official Ajax debut in the away match against Fortuna Sittard: 0–0. The debutant, wearing shirt number 37, was immediately named in the starting line-up that day in Limburg. The central defender also played the entire match.
How often was Šutalo a starter and with which (then) fellow Ajax players did he most frequently appear at kick-off?
Josip Šutalo started in 89 of his 99 matches for Ajax across all competitions. With these five team-mates, he most frequently appeared in the starting line-up:
1. Kenneth Taylor - 73 times
2. Jorrel Hato - 70 times
3. Brian Brobbey - 55 times
4. Youri Baas - 43 times
5. Mika Godts - 43 times
How did the Croatian Ajax player distribute his matches?
In Zwolle, Šutalo plays his 68th match in the Eredivisie. Ajax’s number 37 has scored three times in the league. The Croatian Ajax player has so far only managed to score in the UEFA Europa League (qualifying round). On that stage, he has made 21 appearances. Šutalo also played six matches in the UEFA Champions League, two cup ties and three matches in the UEFA Conference League.
Under which head coach did he play the most matches (and was he most successful)?
Šutalo played by far the most matches in Amsterdam colours under coach Francesco Farioli: 45 of the 100 (in all competitions). Under the Italian, the defender left the pitch as a winner on 28 occasions. That amounts to a win percentage of 62.2 per cent.
Šutalo played his remaining matches under the (interim) coaches: John van ’t Schip (24), John Heitinga (12), Fred Grim (11), Maurice Steijn (6) and Hedwiges Maduro (2).
Šutalo also scored three of his four goals under Farioli’s stewardship.
Šutalo is the standard-bearer of all Ajax players from Croatia
The jubilarian is not the first player in the first team with Croatian nationality. That distinction belongs to Joey Didulica in 1999. The goalkeeper was born in Australia but also holds Croatian nationality. Didulica played twenty matches for Ajax 1 at the start of this century (2001-2002). During his Ajax career, the likeable goalkeeper was, among other things, the stand-in behind first-choice keeper Fred Grim.
Robert Murić wore the Ajax shirt in two matches between 2014 and 2016. Like Šutalo, Jakov Medic and Borna Sosa also signed contracts at the Johan Cruijff ArenA in 2023. The Croatians did not secure a regular place. Medic played nine matches, while Sosa made 25 appearances.
With his hundredth match, Šutalo is by far the Croatian with the most appearances for Ajax 1. And there will surely be many more matches to come.
