Sven Mislintat, the Director of Football at Ajax, revealed that he came close to signing Chuba Akpom, their new striker, for Borussia Dortmund from Arsenal when Akpom was 19 years old.

Akpom recently signed a five-year contract with Ajax, initially costing €12.3 million, and was bestowed the prestigious No.10 jersey. This number has been previously worn by football legends like Johan Cruyff, Frank Rijkaard, Aron Winter, Dennis Bergkamp, Patrick Kluivert, Rafael van der Vaart, and Wesley Sneijder.

During his tenure as the chief scout at Dortmund (2006-2017) and later at Arsenal (2017-2019), Mislintat played a pivotal role in acquiring talents like Robert Lewandowski and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. Currently holding the position of Ajax's Director of Football since April, the German executive openly expressed his admiration for the former Arsenal player, Akpom.

"Chuba possessed a unique talent during his early years, displaying versatility across various positions such as supporting striker, attacking midfielder, winger, and even as a number nine. His diverse skill set was truly remarkable. In all honesty, I held interest in him previously. At the age of 19, I made an attempt to secure his signing from Arsenal for Borussia Dortmund. Regrettably, he opted to remain at Arsenal," shared Mislintat on the Ajax website.

Opting to stay at the Emirates Stadium led Akpom to navigate challenging loan spells. Nevertheless, he persevered, eventually achieving notable success in Greece with PAOK and, subsequently, with Middlesbrough in the Championship last season. He emerged as the second division's top scorer, netting an impressive 29 goals across all competitions and earning the league's player of the season accolade.

"I'm genuinely pleased to witness his development into the accomplished striker he has become at the age of 28," added Mislintat.

Akpom won't be able to participate in Ajax's upcoming match against Excelsior this weekend due to pending work permit arrangements. However, there's a possibility he might be eligible to join the team for their Europa League qualifier next week.