Last season was something of a heartbreaker for fans of AFC Ajax, as the football club's chances of winning a fifth-straight Eredivisie title-something that no club in Dutch soccer history has ever accomplished-fell apart. Sure, the Lancers still played a solid season and finished in second. But they were beaten so handily by their rivals at PSV Eindhoven-PSV ended the season with 88 points in the league standings, while Ajax had 71-that even second place felt like a crushing disappointment. We take a look at their 2015 - 2016 Eredivisie week one performance, as well as rounding up the entire league's first week of play.

A Perfect Start

From the looks of it, though, this season could be a chance for the wearers of the Ajax home jersey 2015
2016 to get back to the top of the Eredivisie table. Indeed, after week one of the 2015 2016 Netherlands football league competition, the Lancers are in the lead, having won a big 3-0 win in an away match at AZ.

The game, which featured two goals from Ajax youngster Anwar El Ghazi, gives the soccer squad a league-leading goal difference of +3 for the Eredivisie. No other club on the table scored three goals and kept a clean sheet, making the August 9th fixture against AZ the perfect start to the new season for the Lancers.

PSV's Problem

To add to the sweetness of their big 3-0 win, Ajax also got to see PSV stumble out of the gate for the 2015 2016 Eredivisie season. The defending league champions underwhelmed in a 2-2 away game draw against ADO Den Haag-a team that finished last season in 13th place.

By comparison, the Lancers' opponents at AZ finished third in the Eredivisie in 2014 2015-making it even more abundantly clear that Ajax came out of 2015 2016 week one looking much stronger than the club that denied them a fifth consecutive title last year.

So what's PSV's problem? Why did the football club look so rusty in their season opener? The root of the issue could be the absence of Memphis Depay, who left Eindhoven for PSV Home Shirt 2015 - 2016Manchester United this summer. Depay was the top scorer in the entire Eredivisie last season, netting 22 goals in 30 league fixtures.

Granted, PSV's second most prolific scorer was also the second most prolific scorer in the league-Luuk de Jong, who actually scored in the soccer club's season opener against Den Haag. Still, without Depay, PSV Eindhoven may have very well lost the edge they had over Ajax in 2014 2015. After all, the arguable reason that Eindhoven beat Ajax by so much last season was that they scored 23 more goals (93 versus 69), and with Depay gone, those numbers could be much, much more even in 2015 2016.

The Rest of the Field

What about the rest of the results for week one of the 2015 2016 Eredivisie? Heerenveen and Roda JC are essentially tied for second, having both managed 3-1 victories-Heerenveen against De Graafschap, Roda against Heracles. With that said, it's tough to read too much into either result: Heerenveen, a seventh-place finisher in 2014 2015, beat a team recently promoted from the Eerste Division, while Roda (another recently promoted soccer club) took down Heracles, one of the lowest ranked Eredivisie teams that avoided relegation last season.

Ajax Home Shirt 2015 - 2016Feyenoord, the fourth-placed football club from the 2014 2015 Eredivisie campaign, was the only other team in the division to score a win in week one. The Stadiumclub beat Utrecht 3-2 to reclaim residence in their fourth-place slot. They're certainly one of the clubs to watch in the coming weeks and months.

The only other squad to escape week one with all three points was NEC-the winners of the 2014 2015 Eerste Division. Like with Roda, it's tough to assess just how much NEC's victory means here. Sure, it's a big accomplishment for any squad to win their first game back in the Eredivisie after a demotion and a season spent in a lower league (NEC were relegated after the 2013 2014 Eredivisie season). With that said, though, NEC had an easy draw for week one, playing Excelsior, who finished 15th in the 2014 2015 Eredivisie.

What will the remainder of the 2015 2016 Eredivisie season bring? Will recently promoted teams like Roda JC and NEC continue to excel, or will they show their weaknesses when they play higher-ranked teams? Will Ajax find their way back to the top of the table? Will PSV get over the loss of Memphis Depay to put together another winning campaign? Only time will tell! Watch out for additional Eredivisie updates from Soccer Box, by following us on social sites like Twitter, Pinterest, and Google +. And shop for your football shirts at our online store now.