Jong Ajax hosted Emmen in the Eerste Divisie regular season second round on 17 August 2026, but the hosts could only manage a 4-6 loss as the visitors showed their attacking intent from the opening whistle. The match produced ten goals in what proved to be an entertaining evening for supporters. Emmen moved up to third place after the result, while the hosts remain in eleventh position with seven points from six games.
The scoring began almost immediately, with D. Pugno giving Jong Ajax the lead in the first minute before Freddy Kispel levelled three minutes later. By then, the pattern was set for a cagey affair, though E. Unuvar restored the home side's advantage in the 19th minute. And here's the thing about matches like this — you never know how they'll unfold, but the 22nd minute saw Pugno double his tally to make it 3-1, and that lead lasted until Cooper-Love struck with a penalty just before half-time.
N. Amadin grabbed a late first-half goal for Emmen in the 45th minute plus three, setting up a second half where the visitors took control. Kispel made it 4-2 in the 51st minute before Cooper-Love added his second from open play in the 61st minute. Unuvar pulled one back for the hosts in the 70th minute, but Cooper-Love completed his hat-trick in the 83rd minute to seal the victory for Emmen.
There were several changes across the match, with D. Janse coming on for Jong Ajax in the 46th minute and Emmen making two substitutions in the 66th minute through M. Abdalla and M. Verkuijl. The visitors also brought on S. Veldhuis and L. Everink in the 68th minute, while N. Amadin was replaced in the 74th minute. A double substitution for Jong Ajax in the 78th minute saw A. Appiah and S. de Falco come off, with Emmen making their own changes in the 86th minute through B. Van Hove and J. Cooper-Love.
The statistics told a story of two sides creating chances, with Emmen registering 12 shots on target compared to the hosts' five. Emmen's shots accuracy stood at 0.52, while Jong Ajax managed 0.45. Possession was evenly split at 51 per cent for the hosts and 49 for the visitors, though the visitors showed more clinical finishing from their 101 attacks to the hosts' 103.
Emmen's result extends their strong start to the campaign, with four wins from five games now giving them 12 points. Jong Ajax's defeat means they remain in the bottom half of the table, having suffered three losses from six matches. To be fair, both teams showed attacking qualities throughout, but Emmen's ability to convert their opportunities proved decisive.