Victorious Ajax go top in Eindhoven, Vincent Janssen hits twenty, while Stefan Thesker claimed a fairytale return for Twente, writes Neil Adderley.

Utrecht 2 v 1 Excelsior: Haller brace sinks Excelsior

A Sebastian Haller double helped Utrecht claim all three points but not before Excelsior had taken an early lead.

Rick Kruys had fired Excelsior in front on four minutes, but Haller brought the sides level from the penalty spot on the half hour mark.

And the French striker rose highest just before the break to head home a deflected Mark van der Maarel cross and seal a victory for fifth place Utrecht.

Heerenveen 0 v 1 Heracles Almelo: Frisians slump to home defeat

Current Willem II boss Jurgen Streppel will take charge of the Frisians for the 2015/16 Eredivisie campaign, however the announcement failed to inspire a lacklustre Heerenveen.

It was Heracles who started brightly and Javairo Navratil gave the visitors a deserved lead on the half hour.

Heerenveen rallied in the second period but Sam Larsson, Martin Thornsby and Kenny Otigba all failed to find the target.

And Heracles, who remain in the fight for a European play off place, held on to secure all the spoils.

Feyenoord 3 v 1 De Graafschap: Feyenoord fight back to deny De Graafschap

Three second half goals saved Feyenoord blushes as the Rotterdammers eventually saw off a spirited De Graafschap.

Robin Propper had given the visitors a shock 25th minute lead, beating right back Rick Karsdorp before slotting past Kenneth Vermeer.

De Graafschap’s Hidde Jurjus kept Feyenoord at bay with a string of excellent saves, but the keeper was helpless as Michiel Kramer squeezed home a Miquel Nelom cross.

Feyenoord pushed forward and were rewarded when Eljero Elia forced home from close range.

And De Graafschap were finally beaten when Thijs Bouma put through his own net.

PEC Zwolle 4 v 1 Willem II: PEC back to form with impressive win

Defender Dirk Marcellis hit a collectors item on 18 minutes and PEC never looked back against struggling Willem II.

Queensy Menig doubled the lead on 23 minutes only for Erik Falkenburg to pull a goal back for Willem II before the break.

However, within fifteen minutes of the second period striker Lars Veldwijk had restored PEC’s two goal lead, and substitute Stef Nijland sealed an easy win for Ron Jans’ men in injury time.

Cambuur Leeuwarden 0 v 1 Roda JC: Doomed Cambuur fall at home

An early second half Tom van Hyfte goal was enough for Roda at relegation​t​hreatened Cambuur.

Kevin van Veen came close to levelling matters for the Frisians, but was thwarted by Roda keeper Benjamin van Leer.

And the visitors held on comfortably to leave Cambuur staring down into the relegation abyss.

Twente 2 v 2 AZ Alkmaar: Twente claim a point in remarkable return for Stefan Thesker

German defender Stefan Thesker returned after battling cancer to score two goals in an incident packed game in Enschede.

Twente took the game to AZ in the first half with Felipe Gutierrez hitting a post, before Hakim Ziyech and Zakaria El Azzouzi also threatened to give the hosts a lead.

However, it was AZ who went ahead as Eredivisie top scorer Vincent Janssen bagged his 20th goal of the season.

Both sides lost a man to a red card as firstly Twente’s El Azzouzi and then AZ’s Stijn Wuytens were given their marching orders.

Twente brought on Stefan Thesker and the German defender made an immediate impact on his return by nodding home a Ziyech free kick.

The joy was short lived as AZ broke to allow Thom Haye the space to rifle home and give the visitors the lead once again.

However, the drama continued with Ziyech hitting the crossbar before returning hero Thesker rose highest in the box to head home his and Twente’s second goal.

ADO Den Haag 1 v 0 NEC Nijmegen: Last minute winner for Malone

There was not much to cheer either set of supporters in a poor affair at the Kyocera Stadium. But a last minute Dion Malone goal proved enough to send the ADO fans home happy.

An Anthony Limbombe run and shot, cutting in from the left before firing wide, was as much as NEC could muster in a more than disappointing match.

Groningen 0 v 3 Vitesse Arnhem: Nightmare run continues for Groningen

Three late goals from Vitesse condemned Groningen to a record equalling sixth straight defeat.

Groningen matched Vitesse for more than an hour, but the introduction of Chelsea loanee Dominic Solanke tipped the balance in favour of the visitors.

Solanke broke the deadlock on 73 minutes, tapping home from close range, before Valeri Qazaishvili smashed home minutes later.

And Solanke eventually sealed the victory for Vitesse with a sublime lobbed finish.

PSV Eindhoven 0 v 2 Ajax: Frank de Boer’s Ajax return to the summit with stunning win in Eindhoven

Ajax claimed a crucial victory in the race for the Eredivisie title, and top spot in the table, as goals from Arkadiusz Milik and Anwar El Ghazi floored PSV in Eindhoven.

Ajax, perhaps hoping PSV’s Champions League exertions would play into its favour, raced into a second minute lead as Milik headed home a Joel Veltman cross.

PSV poured forward but could not find a way to breach the visitors defence, as Luuk de Jong, Jurgen Locadia and Hector Moreno all failed to find the target.

Ajax were happy to soak up any pressure and should have doubled the lead when Milik blazed wide just before halftime.

PSV continued to dominate possession in the second half without really troubling Jasper Cillessen. And when Ajax broke again with 10 minutes left on the clock, substitute El Ghazi found the bottom corner of the net from 20 yards.

The hosts inevitably tired and Ajax comfortably controlled the dying moments of the game to take all the spoils and leapfrog PSV at the top of the Eredivisie table.