Saturday, August 6, 2022 at 6:23 PM• Mart Oude Nijeweeme • Last update: 18:32

Ajax managed to prevent a loss of points during the season opener on Saturday afternoon when visiting Fortuna Sittard. The team of trainer Alfred Schreuder had a hard time with the Limburgers and needed repair work after the break to protect themselves from a first tap: 2-3. After Paul Gladon opened the score on behalf of the home team and signed for the first Eredivisie goal of the 2022/23 season, Kenneth Taylor, Devyne Rensch and substitute Brian Brobbey put things in order for the team from Amsterdam. A beautiful free kick by substitute Burak Yilmaz made it exciting for a while, but the home team didn’t get any further than that.

Schreuder chose to victimize Jay Gorter after his mediocre performance in the Johan Cruijff Scale. Remko Pasveer defended Ajax’s goal. Furthermore, due to the suspension at Edson Álvarez, there was a base place for Perr Schuurs. The defender formed the heart of the defence, together with Jurriën Timber. Daley Blind for that reason moved a line and was flanked in midfield by Steven Berghuis and Kenneth Taylor. Steven Bergwijn and Owen Wijndal made their Eredivisie debut on behalf of Ajax, for Mohamed Kudus there was again no base place. At Fortuna Sittard, Burak Yilmaz was in the selection, but he was not fit enough to start.

Fortuna showed from the first whistle with what intentions it wanted to start the season. The team of Sjors Ultee was on top of it and was supported by almost 12,000 supporters present. They saw how Gladon opened the score after only five minutes of play. After Steven Bergwijn lost the ball, the striker was sent to Pasveer alone, Schuurs was too quick and finished in the left corner: 1-0. The physical battle was illustrated in the person of Mats Seuntjens, who led the fight as captain and escaped a second yellow card after violations on Rensch and Antony.

?? @FortunaSittardstriker Paul Gladon scores the first goal of the 2022/2023 Eredivisie season! ?? #foraja pic.twitter.com/iywHQmZdxn

— ESPN NL (@ESPNnl) August 6, 2022

Ajax did very little in return in the first half. Dusan Tadic shot a free kick into the wall and Yanick van Osch parried a shot from Taylor. The latter also saw a goal disallowed for a push in the back at Rodrigo Guth. At the start of the second half, Schreuder made two substitutions. Brian Brobbey and Davy Klaassen came in for Schuurs and Steven Berghuis. It quickly led to the equalizer, when after an indirect corner a turning cross from Taylor suddenly fell at the far post: 1-1. The incoming Klaassen just came up short to have the goal put in his name.

The substitutions clearly gave Ajax new impetus. Two minutes after the equalizer, Rensch took the lead. The defender combined with Brobbey, outplayed Van Osch and finished. A smell of offside from the striker was removed by the VAR. Ajax was clearly the dominant party in that phase and in the person of Brobbey put an end to all uncertainty after an hour of play. Again it smelled like offside, but this time the Amsterdam party continued. The substitute was found at the second post for the 1-3 via Bergwijn and Tadic. At Fortuna, the hands rightly went together in the last quarter for Yilmaz, who came in for his debut after more than an hour of play.

However, it was Ajax that thought to further expand the score. Bergwijn finished in a controlled manner after being sent deep by Tadic, but was rightly whistled back by the VAR and saw a line go through his first Eredivisie goal in Amsterdam service. It was Yilmaz who suddenly made the game exciting again in the final phase. The striker was first skilfully stopped by Jurriën Timber, but scored not much later. From a magnificent free kick more than twenty meters from the goal, he left Pasveer without a chance for the second time. It turned out to be too late for a serious final offensive.