Super Eagles defender Calvin Bassey has come in for major criticism following his last appearance for Dutch side Ajax Amsterdam.
Ajax welcomed Italian side Napoli to the Johan Cruyff Arena on Tuesday, October 4 for their Matchday 3 fixture of the 2022/23 UEFA Champions League season.
Despite playing without talismanic Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen, Napoli still rumbled to a 6-1 away victory over Bassey's side.
Bassey played all 90 minutes of the match, partnering Jurrien Timber in the centre of defence as Giacomo Raspadori and Giovanni Simeone led Napoli's demolition of the Alfred Schreuder-led side.
In the aftermath of the match, influential Dutch journalist Freek Jansen has roundly faulted Ajax's recruitment activity during the summer, describing it as a 'bad transfer window'.
While speaking on the Pak Schaal Podcast, Jansen said: "It was a bad transfer window at the bottom of the line. Ajax has invested more than a hundred million, but against Napoli, there were only two purchases in the base."
Furthermore, Jansen specifically picked on Super Eagles defender Bassey, claiming that the €23m Ajax paid Rangers for the Nigerian international was a high price to pay.
Jansen claimed that due to still having 'a long way to go' in learning how to play football, Ajax should have paid between five to ten million Euros only for the 22-year-old centre-back.
“With Bassey, you can already conclude that Ajax has paid the absolute top prize for him with €23 million," Jansen said.
"Given his current qualities, it would have made more sense to pay five to 10 million euros for him. He still has a long way to go when it comes to football. Maybe that will still happen."
Bassey joined Ajax on a five-year contract in July 2022 after impressing in the Scottish Premiership and the UEFA Europa League with Rangers.
The Super Eagles defender was the star of the 2022 Europa League final where Rangers lost narrowly on penalties to German Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt.