Match report
Ajax held to 2-2 draw by Excelsior despite dominating possession
Ajax and Excelsior shared four goals in a 2-2 draw at the Johan Cruijff Arena in matchday 7 of the Eredivisie. The result left Ajax fourth in the table on 14 points from seven games, while Excelsior sit sixth with 11 points from the same number of matches.
AI-assisted match report written from official match data.
Julian Brandt put the home side ahead in the 32nd minute, finishing an assist from Kasper Dolberg. Excelsior responded right before the break through Lennard Hartjes, whose goal in first-half stoppage time made it 1-1 at the interval. The visitors then turned the contest on its head early in the second half when Aymen Sliti, assisted by Irakli Yegoian, put them 2-1 ahead in the 62nd minute.
Ajax needed just two minutes to respond, with Toluwalase Arokodare converting an Oscar Gloukh assist in the 64th minute to restore parity at 2-2, a scoreline that held until the final whistle. Despite Ajax dominating the ball and generating far more attempts on goal, Excelsior's finishing proved efficient enough to leave with a share of the points.
Arokodare scored the equaliser in the 64th minute and finished with a rating of 8.2, level with goalscorer Brandt as the home side's top performers on the night.
Ajax enjoyed 81% of possession to Excelsior's 19%, yet could not turn that control into a victory.
Ajax and Excelsior drew 2–2 (half-time 1–1).
Ajax met Excelsior in the Eredivisie (Regular Season - 7). Kick-off was Saturday, 19 September 2026, 18:00 UTC at Johan Cruijff Arena. Referee: Jannick van der Laan.
Team pages: Ajax · Excelsior · Eredivisie
Key moments
- 32' Goal: Julian Brandt (assist: Kasper Dolberg) — 1–0
- 45+1' Goal: Lennard Hartjes — 1–1
- 62' Goal: Aymen Sliti (assist: Irakli Yegoian) — 1–2
- 64' Goal: Toluwalase Arokodare (assist: Oscar Gloukh) — 2–2
Starting line-ups
Ajax (4-3-3)
Excelsior (4-3-3)
Sirius · Why these numbers
Before kick-off Sirius gave Ajax 68%, the draw 18%, Excelsior 14%. It finished Ajax 2–2 Excelsior.
Ajax's rating gap decides it — Ajax are clearly the stronger side on our strength rating, and that is most of Ajax's 68%. The draw at 18% is held down by a high-scoring environment.
Why Ajax at 68%?
Ajax sit 219 points higher on our strength rating — 1808 to 1589. Sides with a 200–300-point rating edge at home won 67.1% of 6,004 such games. The 300 most similar past games finished 69–18–13.
Why only 68%?
No scored evidence points the other way. 68% is what this rating gap has been worth in games like these; the rest is the draw at 18% and Excelsior at 14%.
Why is the draw only 18%?
With a rating gap this size the draw starts at 19.6%. These teams' recent games average 4.2 goals — a high-scoring environment. Games in that environment drew 22.8% of 17,242. The goals environment takes 1.7 points off the draw.
What did we measure but not count?
Ajax average 15 points more possession, but the rating gap here is 219 points. Our control receipt only exists between near-equals — there it moved results; across a class gap we could not measure a separate style edge, so style scores 0 here. Excelsior scored +0.77 goals per game beyond chance-quality lately — hot streaks like that have cooled off. Measured across 2,876 games at this rating gap, hot-finishing sides won 42.1% vs 42.9% class-expected — inside the noise band, so it scores 0 until the receipt clears its evidence bar. The other measured facts on this page scored nothing either.
Sirius probabilities, frozen at kick-off. Analysis, not betting advice. How Sirius is doing this season · Full breakdown, evidence cards and squad news in the Match Insights tab
About this match
On this page: the Ajax vs Excelsior final score and result, goal highlights and video clips of every goal, who scored, starting lineups, match stats and the full match report from this Eredivisie fixture.
- Who scored and when — a goal-by-goal timeline of the match.
- Match stats — possession, shots, expected goals (xG), corners and cards.
- Starting lineups and player ratings for both teams.
- Head-to-head record and recent form for both sides.
Watch the goals: goal highlights and video clips of every goal from Ajax 2–2 Excelsior. Explore more on the Ajax and Excelsior team pages or the Eredivisie page.
Quick answers
›What was the final score of Ajax vs Excelsior?
Ajax and Excelsior drew 2–2 (half-time 1–1).
›Who scored in Ajax vs Excelsior?
Julian Brandt (32') for Ajax; Lennard Hartjes (45+1') for Excelsior; Aymen Sliti (62') for Excelsior; Toluwalase Arokodare (64') for Ajax.
›Where can I watch Ajax vs Excelsior highlights?
Goal highlights and video clips from Ajax 2–2 Excelsior are on this page — open the videos tab to watch every goal.
›What is the head-to-head record between Ajax and Excelsior?
Ajax and Excelsior have met 10 times — 6 wins for Ajax, 1 win for Excelsior and 3 draws.