Ajax complete unexpected Simon Adingra signing from Sunderland

The agreement involves Ajax paying a €3.8 million loan fee. The Dutch club will have the right to sign the Ivory Coast international permanently for €16 million at the end of the season.

Reports said the move had a problem when Ajax asked for a second medical after a small injury was noticed but in the end the problem was not serious enough to stop the transfer.

Technical director Jordi Cruyff said Adingra has the qualities the club thought it was missing.

"Simon brings speed, depth and a strong mentality. Those are the qualities we were looking for " Cruyff said. "He has the qualities to make our play more dangerous. So we are very pleased that he chose Ajax and believes in the plan we have for him."

Adingra also felt that the move was a fit.

"Ajax is an environment and the way they play suits me very well playing 1-v-1 and combining with teammates when in possession. I think Ajax is a team for me " he said in his first interview with the club.

If Adingra is going to get to his best level Ajax probably offers the right kind of stage a team that values wide players asks them to take people on and still carries enough status to feel like a serious step.

The 24-year-old has taken a complicated path to this point. 

A graduate of the Right to Dream academy in Ghana he has previously played for FC Nordsjaelland in Denmark and Union Saint-Gilloise in Belgium, where he had 20 goal contributions in 36 league matches during the 2022-23 season.

Since then things have been a little less stable. He joined Sunderland from Brighton in the summer of 2025. Then spent the second half of last season on loan at Monaco. In all competitions he scored 4 goals. Provided 3 assists, in 34 appearances.

Adingra has also earned 30 caps for Ivory Coast although he played once at the 2026 World Cup.

In Amsterdam he will also meet faces from Monaco with Caio Henrique and Thilo Kehrer both joining Ajax earlier on Wednesday.