There are few clubs with a history to match that of Ajax, but they are in the process of writing a new chapter in Amsterdam with Erik ten Hag taking them to within sight of a first treble since the days of Johan Cruyff.
On Sunday, Ten Hag's spellbinding team secured the first leg as they beat Willem II 4-0 to win the Dutch Cup.
The battle with PSV Eindhoven for the Eredivisie title resumes this weekend, and by then Ajax could be through to their first Champions League final since 1996.
They take a 1-0 lead into their semi-final second leg against Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday, with young stars like Matthijs de Ligt, Frenkie de Jong and Donny van de Beek mesmerising Europe on a run that has already seen them defeat Real Madrid and Juventus.
Those players have dominated the headlines, but the work done by the 49-year-old Ten Hag has been remarkable, and entirely in keeping with his progress up until now.
His career as a player was unremarkable by comparison, with the 2001 Dutch Cup the only major trophy he won on the field. The midfielder captained Twente to victory on penalties against PSV Eindhoven.
"He was the captain, he led by example and he always had a lot of confidence," Scott Booth, who played in that Twente side, told AFP.
Booth, a former Scotland striker, scored in the penalty shoot-out that day. He remembers Ten Hag as "not international class, but a very good club player."
"He was loyal to the club and to his team-mates, he loved the game and he loved talking about the game."
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"He is focused on that, he is always telling us that if we have control of the ball, we have the ability to push back any opponent."
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"I never regretted that decision. To work at a club as big as Bayern, with strong characters like Pep Guardiola or (sporting director) Matthias Sammer was like winning the lottery."
"The likes of De Ligt, De Jong and Van de Beek have only just come out of the academy and are already playing like veterans. Ten Hag deserves huge credit."
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