The Eerste Divisie season kicks off with a fixture that history suggests tilts heavily towards the visitors. Jong AZ have won only one of ten previous meetings with FC Eindhoven, who have triumphed on six of their last ten visits to this ground, including a 2-0 win here last…
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Sign inJong AZ begin their 2026/27 Eerste Divisie campaign at home to FC Eindhoven on Monday evening, with the AFAS Trainingscomplex in Wijdewormer hosting the opening-round contest at 20:00 local time. Both sides will be eager to put a challenging end to last season behind them and start the new term on a positive note.
As a new campaign kicks off, neither club has reported any significant injury concerns from pre-season. Jong AZ are expected to field a youthful side drawn from AZ Alkmaar’s academy, with several prospects who have featured in first-team friendlies over the summer pushing for a starting berth. FC Eindhoven concluded their warm-up programme with a 3-0 friendly defeat at PSV on 29 July, but manager Pascal Maas has had a full squad available for the final preparations. Both benches are likely to lean heavily on fresh legs as the opening minutes of the season demand high intensity.
Jong AZ ended the 2025/26 Eerste Divisie season with a 2-0 home victory over Roda JC on 25 April, snapping a three-match losing streak. That bright finish, however, masked a difficult spring: they had been beaten 3-0 at Willem II, 2-0 by Jong PSV, and shipped five unanswered goals at De Graafschap on 6 April. The young Alkmaarders will be keen to tighten a defence that conceded 12 times in their final four outings and to replicate the kind of pressing game that produced back-to-back wins over Helmond Sport and Roda JC late last term.
FC Eindhoven’s run-in was similarly inconsistent. Their last competitive match of 2025/26 delivered a 1-0 home success against Helmond Sport on 25 April, yet that was only their second win in the final eight rounds. Prior to that, they suffered a 3-0 reverse at Jong FC Utrecht, a 3-1 home loss to Roda JC, and a heavy 4-0 defeat at ADO Den Haag on 6 April. Defensive solidity will be high on the agenda after shipping 11 goals across those four matches. The pre-season workout at PSV, while a loss, gave the squad a demanding examination against top-tier opposition.
This fixture often turns on which team can impose its tempo early. Jong AZ’s high-energy pressing, a hallmark of the AZ academy philosophy, will test FC Eindhoven’s ability to play out from the back. The visitors, generally more experienced at this level, will look to exploit spaces behind a home defence that was stretched repeatedly in the second half of last season. If Jong AZ’s midfield can disrupt FC Eindhoven’s rhythm and spring quick transitions, the home side could dictate the contest.
The Eerste Divisie schedule offers no respite after the opening round. Jong AZ travel to face Volendam next week, while FC Eindhoven host TOP Oss. A confident start at the AFAS Trainingscomplex could set the tone for both clubs as they target early-season momentum in a division where consistency is often the hardest currency.
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