As fans in Amsterdam and Eindhoven prime themselves for the closest title fight in years, the fans of the Eredivisie's midtable teams barely know where to look.
The ever-changing landscape of the Eredivisie's midfield took another swing at the slot machine handle this past weekend. FC Groningen jumped from 15th—one spot above the relegation zone—to the coveted eighth spot, which would be enough to be in play-off contention.
The Pride of the North travelled to Tilburg with rekindled hope after losing just one of their previous four league games. Their two wins from that streak equalled their amount of wins from the 16 weeks prior, giving Dick Lukkien's boys a good wave to ride.
In order to put some extra fuel in the shoes of the Groningen players, former stalwart and current Netherlands captain Virgil van Dijk sent the team a motivational video. It resulted in a resounding 3-1 win over Willem II after Groningen struck three times in fifteen minutes. Goalscorers Stije Resink and Tika de Jonge—who scored his first professional goal—celebrated this by replicating Virgil van Dijk's celebration - a gesture inspired by the children's film The Goonies.
Someone who took celebrations a little further was goalkeeper Etienne Vaessen. The former RKC Waalwijk player took one last dig at his former team's rival by posting a story on Instagram in which he mocked Willem II's fanatic fans with the text 'Kingside children's disco'.
The 2015 KNVB Cup winners profited from number 8 Fortuna Sittard getting a weekend off due to AZ playing in the Europa League and being granted extra rest in between their meetings with Turkish giants Galatasaray. AZ and Fortuna will play this game this upcoming weekend and will feature alongside Feyenoord-Almere City, Ajax-Go Ahead Eagles, and FC Twente-NEC.
But besides profiting from Fortuna's weekend off, FC Groningen made the most of their opportunity by being the only midtable team to win a game.
A boring affair between PEC Zwolle and Robin van Persie's sc Heereveen saw the two sides split the points after a 1-1 draw, NEC only picked up a point against bottom feeders Almere City FC after Vito van Crooij scored a 94th-minute equaliser as the visitors stayed unbeaten for the second week running with a 2-2 draw in Nijmegen, NAC Breda took a point off Champions League outfit Feyenoord after an eventful 0-0 draw, and Heracles Almelo lost 4-0 to league leaders Ajax.
But whereas FC Groningen fans saw their team take off, PSV fans witnessed their team continue to tank their season.
PSV dropped from first to second for the first time the previous weekend and met an evenly struggling FC Utrecht side. The second and third-placed teams had won a combined two games since the turn of the year and could both do themselves a big favour by grabbing a second win of the calendar year.
The 25-time champions from Eindhoven got off to the best start, with Armando Obispo breaking the deadlock after just eleven minutes. But the young defender's header got matched and outdone by Mike van der Hoorn's header just five minutes later - the former Ajax defender stood on the receiving end of a perfectly weighted cross by Jens Toornstra and equalised in the 16th minute.
Another header put Utrecht in front with just fifteen minutes remaining as American international Paxten Aaronson towered over fellow countryman Richard Ledezma to head in a potential winner for the visitors. It wasn't to be after substitute Isaac Babadi equalised two minutes into injury time and salvaged a point for PSV.
PSV were left mightily frustrated by Utrecht's Greek goalkeeper Vasilios Barkas after his near-spotless performance. Barkas was a massive obstacle for the Eindhoven side, with a mind-boggling fifteen (!) saves keeping the home side from scoring more than just a couple of times.
Things could've ended much better for FC Utrecht, but substitute Miliano Jonathans squandered a major opportunity two minutes after Babadi's goal, preventing Utrecht from winning a first away game in Eindhoven since 1980.
With their 2-0 cup win over Feyenoord being their only victory in the last five games across all competitions, PSV have matched their worst 5-game run of the last five years, with the last such run coming in February of 2021. The draw against Utrecht meant PSV, and Ajax's win the next day meant PSV lost their (shared) spot at the top of the league for the first time since September 2023.
Not long after PSV grabbed a single point, Feyenoord did the exact same just 35 kilometres out East.
Away at NAC Breda, the traditional "Evening NAC" saw the home team snatch a point after a controversy-laden game against Champions League side Feyenoord. A more than eventful opening saw NAC come eerily close to opening the score twice through Elias Mar Omarsson, but the Icelandic striker missed the mark on both occasions.
A heated match got even hotter when referee Dennis Higler pointed to the penalty spot after former Brighton midfielder Jakub Moder took down NAC midfielder Maxime Busi. However, a relatively lengthy VAR review controversially determined no foul was committed.
Feyenoord would later not get as lucky with the VAR as Igor Paixao's goal in the 73rd minute got cancelled for offside - much to the Brazilian's frustration after flaunting the goal in front of the home crowd. Video evidence showed Paixao's shoulder being just centimetres offside, meaning Feyenoord were only centimetres away from preventing a goalless draw.
Feyenoord—currently coached by interim manager Pascal Bosschaart—have just won one of their last six Eredivisie games and is 14 points behind league leaders Ajax. However, the gap to third-placed FC Utrecht is just three points, meaning the battle for a ticket to the Champions League qualifiers is as intense as ever.
Sixth-placed FC Twente, meanwhile, beat a wasteful RKC Waalwijk 2-0 after Sam Lammers' stunning opener got Twente going after nearly half an hour. Eredivisie top scorer Sem Steijn decided the game in the 83rd minute after RKC saw Richonell Margaret and Mohamed Ihattaren squander several chances each.
Further down the league table, Go Ahead Eagles had another Nordic hero to thank for their continued impressive run of form. The Deventer side beat Sparta 1-0 after Danish starlet Jakob Breum struck right before half-time and have now stayed unbeaten in 10 of their last 11 games in all competitions.
Winners of the Week
One day after fans from clubs of the country's fifth and second-biggest cities were left disappointed, those supporting the club for the nation's capital were left with nothing but endless optimism.
Both fans and players of 36-time champions Ajax knew what Sunday could mean for the club: a complete turnaround of the team's fortunes over the past nearly three years. The Amsterdam side already took over the league's top spot the weekend before after PSV's newest misstep and a win over Fortuna Sittard on a below-par pitch, but could now take the outright lead after Saturday's results.
Just three days after their 2-0 UEFA Europa League win over Royale Union Saint-Gilloise—a game played on one of the worst pitches in recent UEFA competition history—Heracles Almelo came to visit the Johan Cruyff ArenA on the back of a nine-game unbeaten streak. The team from the East of the country were the third-best-performing Eredivisie side in 2025, meaning Ajax would have to bring their best to beat them.
With the return of the trusted front three of Mika Godts, Brian Brobbey, and Bertrand Traore, manager Francesco Farioli fielded a strong side in between the Europa League knock-out games against USG. Their game started off more than strong when veteran Steven Berghuis launched a world-class deep ball, and Mika Godts scored his first goal since returning from a hamstring injury.
Without some key starters—captain Jordan Henderson, centre-backs Youri Baas, and midfielder Kenneth Taylor all missed Sunday's game—Ajax stayed in control throughout the match and doubled the lead five minutes before half-time after Brian Brobbey capped off a smooth attack with his third league goal of the campaign.
January acquisition Oliver Edvardsen then put Ajax up 3-0 with a clever effort and his first goal for Ajax. Shortly after, Davy Klaassen celebrated a major feat by scoring his 100th goal for Ajax - one he'd reflect on with tears in his eyes after the match. "When you start as a little boy, you just want to play in Ajax's first team," Klaassen said before stopping for a second to hold back the tears.
"Then scoring 100 goals doesn't even occur to you. This is even beyond my dreams. You could see I was extra happy. It was special for me."
It wasn't just a special day for Davy Klaassen and Oliver Edvardsen—18-year-old Rayane Bounida and 17-year-old Sean Steur made their debuts for Ajax in the final 15 minutes of Sunday's win. Bounida extended his contract the evening prior to the match after a rumour-filled January transfer window, whereas Steur made his first minutes in the Johan Cruyff ArenA after joining the team's youth academy at the age of 8.
Their cameos meant that Ajax played with five teenagers on the pitch before the final whistle: Dies Janse (18), Jorrel Hato (18), Jorthy Mokio (16), Sean Steur (17), and Rayane Bounida (18) all featured simultaneously against Heracles—a sign that Ajax's tradition of developing talent is still alive and well.
A glamorous win, a special moment for Davy Klaassen, two exciting youngsters making their debuts, and Ajax taking a 2-point lead in the Eredivisie - Sunday marked the end of two years of sheer underperformance and major turbulence. FC Groningen gave Ajax a run for their money, but the league leaders are our Winners of the Week.
Losers of the Week
Feyenoord fans are riding the most emotional rollercoaster in years. After Arne Slot—the team's most successful manager in recent memory—left for Liverpool in the summer of 2024, the Rotterdam side went through months of instability, which led to the firing of Brian Priske last week.
Feyenoord's first game under interim manager Pascal Bosschaart was a gritty 1-0 Champions League win over AC Milan. The surprise victory at least temporarily lifted the spirits around De Kuip, but it left Feyenoord short-handed after captain Quinten Timber suffered a nasty-looking knee injury.
The 0-0 draw in Breda wouldn't even make the most negative headline in 48 hours' time for the Rotterdam faithful: Quinten Timber's season would officially be declared over on Monday afternoon. The captain suffered a ligament injury and will have to undergo a season-ending surgery in order to properly repair the damage done.
The news came shortly after the club announced right-back Bart Nieuwkoop's season was over, too, after the 28-year-old's lower leg injury turned out to be worse than anticipated. With Jordan Lotomba out for the season as well, Feyenoord's only options at right-back are youth academy product Givairo Read and Costa Rican Jeyland Mitchell.
With just 24 hours before Feyenoord kick off the second leg of their UEFA Champions League knock-out tie in and against Milan, temporary boss Bosschaart will have to overcome a mountain of injuries in order to reach the round of 16. No matter how you want to look at it: this Feyenoord season is one of the most turbulent in recent times.
Goal of the Week
The Eredivisie was riddled with quality goals this past weekend.
Sam Lammers' opener for FC Twente against RKC Waalwijk showed real skill and had pundits in the Netherlands compare the former Rangers man to Arsenal great Dennis Bergkamp, Oliver Edvardsen's first goal for Ajax involved some serious skills and athleticism, and Tika de Jonge's 3-0 against Willem II was beautifully picked from the air.
However, Mika Godts' opener against Heracles Almelo seemed to top them all. Steven Berghuis pinged a perfect pass to Mika Godts without even controlling the ball first and saw the Belgian winger calmly slotting it behind Fabian de Keijzer. Berghuis' assist put the veteran on 206 goal contributions this century, which is one more than former Feyenoord and Liverpool great Dirk Kuyt and good for third place on that list. And above all, this week's Goal of the Week.
Team of the Week
Realistically, who other than FC Utrecht's Vasilios Barkas could've taken home the highest grade of the week? The Eredivisie's own Greek Freak made a grand total of 15 saves against PSV—the most in an Eredivisie game since 2018—and prevented 1.10 goals, according to Opta's xG model. Barkas is accompanied by team-mate Mike van der Hoorn after his equaliser against PSV, four interceptions and a team-high 13 clearances.
Ajax and FC Groningen share this week's title for biggest contributors with two players each. 18-year-old Jorrel Hato provided two assists during Ajax's 4-0 win, completed 47 of 49 passes (96% accuracy), won 8 of his 11 duels, and created the most chances out of everyone with 2. Team-mate and captain Davy Klaassen snatched a spot in this week's Top XI with his 100th goal of his Ajax career.
FC Groningen convincingly won 3-1 in Tilburg and dominate this week's midfield with two top performers - Dave Kwakman and Stije Resink both scored against Willem II, launching their team to the eighth place in the Eredivisie table.
A quartet of goal scorers also made the Team of the Week: PSV's Armando Obispo, sc Heerenveen's Alireza Jahanbakhsh, Almere City FC's Hamdi Akujobi, and PEC Zwolle's Dylan Vente all scored in their respective teams' draws and made their way into this week's Top XI.
Feyenoord's Anis Hadj Moussa was his team's biggest offensive threat and peppered NAC Breda's goal with 8 shots. His 14 touches and 21 passes inside NAC's box, and nine dribbles all led the team in their goalless draw in Noord-Brabant.
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