Ajax have been enjoying a solid start to the Eredivisie campaign this season under Francesco Farioli in his first season in Amsterdam.
Having had just one year in France with Nice and a couple of years in Turkey, the manager would have been a relative unknown and considered a gamble.
Given that Ajax had been having trouble with managers in the past seasons, it was a potentially huge risk.
However, after a season that had seen four men be in charge, the new regime appears to have got the club back to the heights they once enjoyed as one of Holland’s most prestigious teams.
Ajax challenging for the Eredivisie title
The club hasn’t been able to win the Eredivisie title since the 2021/22 season, with Feyenoord and PSV Eindhoven having been successful since.
Indeed, there have been two poor seasons by the holders of the most Eredivisie titles in history (36).
In the 2022/23 season, they finished third on 69 points.
That was six points behind PSV (second) and a huge 13 points behind Feyenoord.
Last year, things were calamitous for Ajax.
As mentioned, they had four different managers throughout the campaign.
Maurice Steijn started the season before being let go in October; Hedwiges Maduro took over for a week before he was replaced by John van ‘t Schip on an interim basis.
That wasn’t without Michael Valkanis being needed for a brief spell, too.
A fifth-placed finish would ensue, which was impressive given the problems they had throughout the campaign.
Now, with Farioli in charge, things appear to have been stabilized.
They’re back at the top and competing with the likes of PSV.
Will Ajax win the Eredivisie?
He’ll likely have been tasked with getting the team back to its heights in his first season.
This would probably have included winning the title and bringing it back to Amsterdam for the first time in three years.
The first manager to have been non-Dutch since the 1997/98 season, and the first ever Italian they’ve had in the role, Farioli has started off extremely well.
At the time of writing, he has managed Ajax to 11 wins in his opening 16 games, with three draws and two defeats
In terms of the title race, they sit six points behind PSV, who are yet to draw a match this season.
According to the odds available when betting on Ajax, it might be a gap that is too big to climb.
The current leaders are favoured by the bookmakers, as they have odds of just 1.12.
When you compare that to what Ajax are valued at (9.00), then it would seem not many are giving them a chance to compete.
How have Ajax found themselves in the position they are?
What has become clear under the Italian manager is that Ajax are prepared to play a certain way.
Farioli is known for favouring possession-based play, but wants his players to be able to pass and move at pace.
At the same time, he wants his team to play a high defensive line and press as much as possible.
That can be seen from the matches and results that they have had in the Eredivisie so far.
Many of the metrics and statistics that provide evidence rank highly.
For instance, Ajax have managed to score the third-most goals so far (35), with PSV (56) and Feyenoord (40) above them.
At the same time, they’ve conceded the second-least (16); again, only PSV have shipped fewer (13).
Admittedly, we’re not quite at the halfway stage of the Eredivisie campaign just yet, so there is a lot of football still left to be played.
However, things certainly look promising under the guidance of Farioli so far.
Results have been mixed across other competitions so far this year, with the Europa League producing three wins from six.
However, with the Dutch league likely to be the main focal point for now, fans of Ajax might just be pleasantly pleased with how things are going when taking a gamble on a manager who didn’t have a huge reputation before his arrival.
