Scrutinised Ajax manager John Heitinga changed his team in two spots after last week's 3-2 win away at FC Twente. Youri Regeer and Owen Wijndal returned to the starting lineup, replacing James McConnell and Josip Sutalo.
Against Heerenveen, who were unbeaten in six games across all competitions, a slow opening half was looking to burst open after Ajax were given a penalty after Sam Kersten tripped midfielder Kenneth Taylor in the box. However, referee Jannick van der Laan ruled it out after advice from the VAR.
The game was interrupted after home fans set off fireworks in honour of a fanatic Ajax fan who passed away in a boating incident in Amsterdam last week. Following a short interruption of 15 minutes, the match was resumed.
Ajax were the most active team after the interruption, and following a big chance for Raul Moro, Mika Godts opened the scoring in the 38th minute with a shot in the far corner.
The home side were given a massive opportunity at doubling the lead following halftime, but with Oscar Gloukh, Raul Moro, and Mika Godts all sprinting towards Bernt Klaverboer's goal, Godts went for his own success and squandered the chance when the only Heerenveen defender was able to stop the Belgian.
Heerenveen found a surprising equaliser when 41-year-old Remko Pasveer, whom Heitinga gave the nod over Vitezslav Jaros ahead of Ajax's Champions League game at Chelsea, mishandled a shot from distance from Maas Willemsen and gave Vaclav Sejk a free shot on goal, which the Czech loanee took with both hands.
A wasteful Oscar Gloukh, who lost the ball 22 times against Heerenveen, was pushed off the ball with ease before Heerenveen captain Luuk Brouwers fired a shot at Pasveer's goal, which required a save from the experienced stopper.
Frenchman Maxence Rivera tried his luck from distance many times and got close in stoppage time, but saw his curling effort fly wide of Pasveer's post.
Ajax created few to no chances in the latter stages of the game, giving Heerenveen no problems in trying to stay unbeaten in their seventh-straight game. The Frisian visitors won their first point in the Johan Cruyff ArenA since 2019, keeping Ajax, who drew for the fifth time in the Eredivisie this season, to just two wins since beating PEC Zwolle 3-1 on September 13th.
The Amsterdam giants host Turkish giants Galatasaray in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday in an effort to win their first point of the European campaign.
Check out all the match and player statistics from Ajax-Heerenveen on Flashscore