Ajax travelled to Zwolle on Sunday afternoon to kick off their Eredivisie campaign against PEC Zwolle.

Zwolle did not make it easy for Ajax during the first hour, but the home team went down to ten men in the 57th minute as Sherel Floranus was given his marching orders.

Just over 15 minutes later, Jorthy Mokio, who was bought on as a substitute after an hour, fired Ajax ahead with a well-taken goal, assisted by new signing Tolu Arokodare, who was bought on just minutes before.

Julian Brandt did not start but played for roughly an hour and made an impact. The German midfielder scored his first goal in an Ajax shirt to double the lead and secure the three points. Mika Godts assisted Brandt's goal.

The Belgian winger was supposed to start, but picked up an injury during the warm-up. He was fit enough to play the last 30 minutes, though, and has emphasised that he will continue to play for Ajax as long as there is no agreement between the Amsterdammers and Paris Saint-Germain.

Ajax's win puts them two points ahead of PSV Eindhoven, who will likely be their biggest rivals for the title. PSV dropped points in their season opener vs Fortuna Sittard. There is obviously a long way to go, but a start like this sets the tone.

Marc ter Stegen made his Ajax debut vs PEC Zwolle, and while he did not have a great deal to do given Zwolle only had two shots on target, Ter Stegen looked solid and made one impressive save from a close-range header.

He was good on the ball as well, and a clean sheet on debut is exactly what he would have been hoping for.

Tolu Arokodare could turn out to be one of Ajax's most valuable players this season. He set up Mokio's goal very well, and his physicality will be difficult for a lot of centre-backs to deal with.

He will likely be used mainly late in games when Ajax need a goal, but his ability to operate as a target man means he could also start in games where Michel wants to play more directly.

Marcos Leonardo has immense potential but has had a difficult start to life in Amsterdam. If Tolu can continue his impressive form in the coming games, he could potentially give Michel a selection headache.

Ajax were dominant vs Zwolle, but during the first hour, Michel's team struggled to create chances. During Conference League qualifying, Ajax have regularly created big chances, but Vojvodina and Shelbourne FC are obviously not the best teams.

Michel has made a positive start to his tenure as Ajax head coach, but Ajax's performance for large parts of the game on Sunday afternoon was uninspiring. If Ajax want to win the Eredivisie title, they will need to find ways to create chances against well-organised defensive blocks. 

Brandt has not started a game yet, but will undoubtedly make Ajax significantly more creative when he plays. The former Borussia Dortmund midfielder will play a major role in Ajax's title charge.

Ajax need to sign a right winger in the coming weeks, and also a left winger if Godts leaves.

The right wing is a real area of concern. Steven Berghuis isn't a traditional winger and prefers to operate in the half-spaces. Maher Carrizo could develop into a top player, but still has a lot to work on before he will be able to make a significant impact in an Ajax shirt.

Ajax need a right winger who can hold the width and dominate in 1v1 situations. Berghuis could still play on the right with an overlapping right-back, but having a winger who can hold the width would give Michel tactical flexibility.

The same goes for the left wing. Abdellah Ouazane started in Godts' absence, but he is more of a central player. The same goes for Oscar Gloukh. He could probably play there if he has an overlapping left-back to allow him to move inside. Signing a winger to replace Godts who can do what he does would give Michel a nice range of profiles to choose from.

Youri Baas has not started in any of Ajax's Conference League qualifying games so far, but delivered a very good performance against Zwolle.

Baas was good on the ball and did well in his duels. Michel has said that he sees Baas as a starter and also believes he can play with Daley Blind, despite the fact that they are both left-footed.