Greg . 1 day ago

ErediVision: Ajax and Feyenoord off the mark, NEC should aim high

The Dutch Eredivisie always leaves plenty to talk about, ask, and wonder.

In ErediVision, we talk about five burning questions and hot topics the Eredivisie leaves us weekend after weekend.

1: Are Ajax salvageable?Another week, another disappointing outing from Ajax.

Go Ahead Eagles fought, but did not play their best football as they held the Amsterdam side to a 2-2 draw in Deventer.

Ajax, again, looked lost out there sometimes.

John Heitinga's vision has not shone in the opening weeks of the Eredivisie, and neither has the hand of Heitinga's former teacher, Arne Slot.

The statistics did not align with what we saw on the pitch.

People who didn't watch the match, but checked the statistics on Betopick, might think Ajax were somewhat robbed of a win, because, mind you, the Eagles scored with two of their three attempts on target and recorded an xG about a third of Ajax's (0.

64 to 1.

87).

But it was pretty dire.

Ajax took twelve low-quality shots (<0.

06 xG); they surfaced lethargic when defending Go Ahead's two goals.

Heitinga's promised high-press system has failed to deliver.

The build-up lacks pace and creativity.

The full-backs are prone to errors, and Wout Weghorst did not bring any spark as the team's sole striker.

Gaps, gaps, gaps.

A lot to figure out for Ajax and Heitinga, who'll have to work twice as hard to make their Champions League campaign worth it.

2: Have NAC Breda found their Superman?You know them.

Nooit Opgeven Altijd Doorzetten Aangenaam Door Vermaak En Nuttig Door Ontspanning Combinatie Breda.

NAC Breda, the club that went through a rough time earlier this year.

However, they might be on the brink of some beautiful days ahead.

On Monday, August 11th, NAC revealed the arrival of Lewis Holtby, the former Schalke, Spurs, and Germany super talent.

The days of promise are foregone, but the 34-year-old midfielder did not take long to make an impression in the Eredivisie.

Less than a week after signing, NAC fans fell in love with Holtby, who lit up his debut by scoring after 23 minutes and providing the assist to Juho Talvitie's 2-0 in the second half.

The German star has already made himself vital to the team, judging by how NAC's defence fell apart following Holtby's substitution.

But they persevered and beat Fortuna Sittard 2-1.

Holtby led NAC to their first win since January and proved to the Breda faithful that this team is alive and well.

That's quite the first impression.

3: Will PSV be fine without Alassane Plea?PSV's steady 2-0 win over FC Twente in a traditionally tricky away game left manager Peter Bosz with one massive worry: Alassane Plea.

The French striker joined PSV earlier this summer as a new offensive weapon, and he would soon become vital to the team with Ricardo Pepi still recovering from the significant knee injury he sustained in January.

But disaster struck last weekend - Plea sustained a seemingly significant knee injury in a duel with Robin Propper.

Alassane Plea went down injured after a duel with Robin PropperČTK / imago sportfotodienst / IMAGOThe grimace on Bosz's face was telling.

Plea's knee buckled awkwardly, and he had to be taken off immediately.

The Frenchman was later seen on crutches, and while there's no word on a diagnosis just yet, an extended absence looms.

Will PSV be fine, though?Probably, actually.

PSV's depth is, with a lack of better words, scary.

Yes, they might have to re-enter the transfer market to find a new striker, but Pepi is on his way back.

And besides, the attack is stacked.

Ruben van Bommel, Ivan Perisic, Couhaib Driouech, Dennis Man, and Esmir Bajraktarevic are excellent options for Bosz, who used Guus Til and Ismael Saibari as emergency strikers against Twente.

PSV's pass map against FC TwenteX/@11tegen11_plots19-year-old Robin van Duiven is making waves for Jong PSV with three goals in this season's first two games, as well as Ayodele Thomas, who's been running riot on the left wing.

But above all, PSV's squad is too good for anyone in the Eredivisie to challenge them truly.

4: NEC's depth can get them farWho saw this coming? NEC steamrolled their opponents in the first two weeks of the new season, and it might not end soon.

Excelsior were beaten 5-0 and Heracles 4-1 this past weekend.

NEC manager Dick Schreuder does not hide his desire to trample his opponents and was clearly unhappy with his team not creating nearly enough chances against ten men, so he chose to make an impact.

When Heracles went down to ten men after Jizz Hornkamp's red card in the 13th minute, Schreuder brought on Youssef El Kachati.

Whereas NEC recorded an xG of just 0.

24 before right-back Brayann Pereira was taken off, the Nijmegen side went off for an xG of 1.

38 in the remaining 16 minutes of the first half.

El Kachati, who provided an assist during NEC's big win, wasn't the only substitute who made a significant impact.

2005-born Kento Shiogai scored two goals after coming on in the 69th minute and continues to impress in his young career.

And besides him, the experienced Virgil Misidjan and Vito van Crooij have proven to be effective in the Eredivisie.

Former Newcastle and PSV left-back Jetro Willems joined the team earlier this summer, too.

The mix of young talent and proven veterans in NEC's squad might just be enough for them to make a push for European football - a stage they haven't reached since reaching the round of 32 of the 2008/09 UEFA Cup.

5: Feyenoord aren't there yetIt wasn't the greatest of weeks in the South of Rotterdam.

Turkish giants Fenerbahce sent Feyenoord packing in the Champions League after beating the Rotterdam side 5-2 - a very disappointing outing after Feyenoord won the first leg 2-1.

Promoted side Excelsior would be beaten with that same score a couple of days after the Fenerbahce fiasco, but it did not remove the sour taste from anyone's mouth.

Feyenoord were not switched on in the slightest in the opening 15 minutes, giving Excelsior the opportunity to take an early lead via Derensili Sanches Fernandes.

It wasn't until Quinten Timber's effort in the 22nd minute that Feyenoord even took a shot at Excelsior, who lost 5-0 to NEC the week before.

Given, Feyenoord won, but they kept Excelsior alive for all ninety minutes.

They were lucky when Arthur Zagre fired a shot from distance on the post, and Gyan de Regt somehow found the post with his rebound as well, or it might've been a very different afternoon in Kralingen.

Feyenoord somewhat dropped the ball last week, and Robin van Persie has some things to fix.

Ayase Ueda scored two goals in the first two games of the Eredivisie season, but is he truly good enough? And is Casper Tengstedt trustworthy enough to let him take over if Ueda gets injured again or hits a slump?They have time, and unlike Heitinga's Ajax, quite a clear plan with Van Persie at the helm.

So, they are not there quite yet, but they are on their way.