Teenage Victory star Sebastian Pasquali bound for Ajax

Melbourne Victory sensation Sebastian Pasquali is set to leave the A-League club to join Dutch powerhouse AFC Ajax.

Ajax-bound Victory player Sebastian Pasquali. Picture: Mark Stewart

Teenage Melbourne Victory sensation Sebastian Pasquali is set to leave the A-League club to join Dutch powerhouse AFC Ajax.

The 16-year-old has made only two A-League appearances for Victory after rocketing to prominence with an assured performance against Juventus in a friendly match earlier this year.

Victory said yesterday they’d been informed of Pasquali’s intention to move but are yet to receive formal word from Ajax.

Pasquali was withdrawn from the squad for last night’s clash against Wellington Phoenix at Etihad Stadium. He was not even contracted to Victory when he faced Juventus in the International Champions Cup in July but caught the eye with a cameo off the bench and even converted the winning penalty.

The Wangaratta product also set up Marco Rojas for the winning goal in Victory’s 2-1 triumph over Adelaide last week.

Meanwhile, Newcastle’s injury crisis has continued with defensive utility Ben Kantarovski likely to miss the next month with a torn meniscus. The 24-year-old had to be helped from the field after suffering the injury to his troublesome right knee late in the Jets’ 2-0 home loss to Sydney FC on Saturday.

Coach Mark Jones initially believed it wasn’t serious and that Kantarovski would be available for this weekend’s trip to face Wellington at Westpac Stadium.

However, scans on Sunday revealed the damage is enough to keep him sidelined for an indefinite period, with a firmer timeline to be established once Kantarovski sees a specialist.

Kantarovski, who made his Jets debut as a 16-year-old, has made 143 career appearances for the club but has been plagued by injury the past few seasons.

He was already filling in at centre-back in the absence of injured stoppers Lachlan Jackson (ankle) and Daniel Mullen (knee), and his absence will put further stress on Newcastle’s defensive stocks.

AAP