"Mentally, I have always been strong, partly thanks to the advice of people close to me." So says Mylo van der Lans. The central defender is the captain of Ajax O16 and the son of a tomato grower. He praises his father. "He has his own business and when I see how hard he works, that sets an example for me. Going out the door at 6.30am and coming home at six, I have nothing to complain about."
Van der Lans' parents have had their own tomato business in 's-Gravenzande for many years. "In the holidays, I sometimes helped them. Now I don't have to do that anymore, and I get to focus on school and Ajax." Nevertheless, he still sometimes lens his parents a hand when it's convenient. "I help pick tomatoes and prune." Whether he has ever thought about taking over the business? "No, that's not for me. I have nothing to do with that industry," he laughs in the interview on Ajax's website, which can be read in full here.