JaapStam had a playing career which spanned from 1992 until 2007 and during this period of time, the already retired footballer went on to join some of the biggest clubs in Europe including: Manchester United and Ac.Milan.
During his playing career, Stam was considered to be one of the finest players in the world as he was named as the Dutch Footballer of the Year in 1997 and managed to lift major titles such as the Champions League and the Premier League.
After deciding to hang up his boots in October of 2007, Stam opted to become the assistant coach for the Dutch club PEC Zwolle and has turned into the assistant coach of Ajax where he has received praised from a number of other managers due to his coaching abilities but the former player has revealed that it was never in this mind to become a manager.
When JaapStam was asked about taking up a coaching role after ending his playing career, Stam said that he did not like the idea of turning into coach but his thoughts changed a few years later.
Staam said: “A lot of players when they stop playing football, and I was one of them, think 'I don't want to go into coaching. Up until now I'm liking it. It's so nice to be working with young players, being able to pass on my experience and knowledge which hopefully they learn from, of course. The only thing that is quite hard is that you don't win every game! That's the life of a coach.”
Frank de Boer is the coach of Ajax and he has been so impressed by the work that JaapStam does as an assistant coach that he wouldn’t be surprised to see him taking up more important managerial roles not only in Ajax but also in different clubs.