Before season 1957-58 it is not clear what the restrictions are exactly with respect to substitutions, but match reports make clear there was not (always) a restriction on the number of substitutes in a match, but that substitutes were only allowed if a player was injured, while there were also regular references that an opponent had to approve a substitution.
In the season 1957-58 the substitute rules changed so that only 1 field player and 1 goalkeeper were allowed to be substituted during a match, still only when they were injured. During a very short period there was an additional restriction, namely that players were only allowed to be substituted before the 44th minute. This extra restriction was soon removed after an incident where a player got injured and the 44th minute and was not allowed to be substituted by the referee in the 45th minute.
Only at the start of season 1967-68 the restriction that only injured players could be substituted was relaxed, making it possible to make tactica; substitutions. At that time the regulations for the FIFA and various country associations differ, as an example until season 1965-66 it was not allowed to make substitutions in the English leagues.
At the start of season 1969-70 the regulations of the Dutch soccer association became the same as the FIFA regulations, besides the goalkeeper it was now allowed to substitute two field players.
There was one more change at the start of season 1995-96 which got us to the situation we have now. It is allowed to substitute any three players (so the restriction that one has to be a goalkeeper has been removed).
Find below tables with the following statistics wrt the substitutes at Ajax in official matches: Most Made Substitutes, Most Often Substituted Out, Most Often Substituted In, Least Average Minutes on the Pitch and Most Goals After Substituted In.
| Player In | Number |
|---|---|
| Davy Klaassen | 75 |
| David Neres | 67 |
| Klaas-Jan Huntelaar | 64 |
| Brian Brobbey | 62 |
| Siem de Jong | 60 |
| Lasse Schöne | 53 |
| Arnold Mühren | 51 |
| Kasper Dolberg | 51 |
| Arnold Scholten | 49 |
| Miralem Sulejmani | 48 |
| John van 't Schip | 48 |
| Dennis Rommedahl | 47 |
| Wamberto | 47 |
| Thulani Serero | 46 |
| Ryan Babel | 46 |
| Dennis Bergkamp | 45 |
| Nordin Wooter | 45 |
| Nicolae Mitea | 45 |
| Anton Gaaei | 44 |
| Richard Witschge | 43 |
| Mohammed Kudus | 42 |
| John Bosman | 42 |
| Chuba Akpom | 41 |
| Ronald de Boer | 40 |
| Nourdin Boukhari | 39 |
| Kian Fitz-Jim | 39 |
| Leonardo | 39 |
| Ruud Suurendonk | 37 |
| Steven Berghuis | 37 |
| Donny van de Beek | 37 |
| Jari Litmanen | 37 |
| Ron Willems | 36 |
| Bryan Roy | 35 |
| Martijn Reuser | 35 |
| Perr Schuurs | 35 |
| Viktor Fischer | 34 |
| Kolbeinn Sigþórsson | 34 |
| Sonny Silooy | 33 |
| Branco van der Boomen | 33 |
| Geert Meijer | 32 |
| Dani | 32 |
| Benni McCarthy | 32 |
| Mika Godts | 32 |
| Jurgen Ekkelenkamp | 31 |
| Kenneth Taylor | 31 |
| Christian Eriksen | 31 |
| Michel Kreek | 30 |
| Zakaria Labyad | 30 |
| Devyne Rensch | 30 |
| Nigel de Jong | 30 |
| Zlatan Ibrahimović | 30 |
| Player | Minutes per Goal | Minutes | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nikos Machlas | 38.2 | 382 | 10 |
| Cedric van der Gun | 55 | 275 | 5 |
| Klaas-Jan Huntelaar | 65.2 | 1303 | 20 |
| Marco van Basten | 70 | 490 | 7 |
| Kolbeinn Sigþórsson | 76.8 | 768 | 10 |
| Benni McCarthy | 78.7 | 787 | 10 |
| Dmitri Bulykin | 79 | 395 | 5 |
| Stefan Pettersson | 81 | 567 | 7 |
| Shota Arveladze | 82.2 | 822 | 10 |
| Danny Hoesen | 84.6 | 423 | 5 |
| Brian Brobbey | 84.9 | 1274 | 15 |
| Patrick Kluivert | 88 | 616 | 7 |
| Kenneth Pérez | 92 | 644 | 7 |
| Chuba Akpom | 93.1 | 1024 | 11 |
| Wout Weghorst | 95.4 | 668 | 7 |
| Gerald Vanenburg | 96.3 | 578 | 6 |
| Nourdin Boukhari | 97 | 679 | 7 |
| Oliver Edvardsen | 103.6 | 518 | 5 |
| Zlatan Ibrahimović | 104.1 | 937 | 9 |
| Johnny Rep | 106.8 | 854 | 8 |
| Peter Hoekstra | 112.3 | 674 | 6 |
| Aron Winter | 112.3 | 674 | 6 |
| John Bosman | 114.1 | 1369 | 12 |
| Ryan Babel | 117.3 | 1173 | 10 |
| Mohammed Kudus | 126.5 | 759 | 6 |
| Dennis Rommedahl | 127.2 | 1399 | 11 |
| Mido | 132 | 660 | 5 |
| Bertrand Traoré | 132 | 660 | 5 |
| Dean Gorré | 136.7 | 820 | 6 |
| Kasper Dolberg | 147.9 | 1183 | 8 |
| Ronald de Boer | 150.1 | 1051 | 7 |
| Lasse Schöne | 155.5 | 1244 | 8 |
| Leonardo | 156.4 | 1095 | 7 |
| Ron Willems | 160.8 | 804 | 5 |
| Nicolae Mitea | 160.9 | 1126 | 7 |
| Ruud Suurendonk | 162 | 1134 | 7 |
| David Neres | 169.4 | 1525 | 9 |
| Dennis Bergkamp | 177.9 | 1245 | 7 |
| Siem de Jong | 181 | 1267 | 7 |
| Davy Klaassen | 228.3 | 1826 | 8 |
| Nordin Wooter | 229.2 | 1146 | 5 |
| Arnold Mühren | 247.7 | 1734 | 7 |
| Wamberto | 266.8 | 1334 | 5 |