The De Telegraaf, one of the Netherlands' largest newspapers, once ran a cartoon that quickly spread among Dutch football fans.
In the comic strip, Yang Yang was reimagined as a playful cartoon character — still recognizably himself, but drawn with exaggerated charm and innocence. The scene showed him tormenting a hulking defender, muscles bulging and face twisted in determination, as Yang Yang danced around him with ease.
Thanks to his extraordinary range of movement, and Ajax's tactical focus on revolving their attack around him, Yang Yang's changes of direction in the comic were near-comical. He would dart to the left, then swerve to the right, spinning his marker into confusion. The caption showed him smiling mischievously:
"Guess what? Am I going left this time? Or right?"
"If you guess correctly… you win a prize. If you don't… well, that's okay too."
Of course, the defender guessed wrong — and in the final frame, stood helpless as Yang Yang finished the move with a goal. The punchline showed the exhausted defender sobbing in despair, tears flying from his eyes as he collapsed to the ground, crushed by regret.
But the cartoon's final note struck a sharper truth.
"In reality," it read, "even if you guess right… you'll still end up crying."
It was a joke, of course — but only partly.
Defending against Yang Yang had become a nightmare across the Eredivisie. His sharp turns, sudden acceleration, and constant positional drift meant that even the most disciplined defenders often found themselves chasing shadows. And worse still, when they did manage to anticipate his direction, it rarely made a difference. His ability to shift balance and explode into space, or release a decisive pass with either foot, often made any prediction useless.
For fans, it was entertainment. For opponents, it was suffering. For Ajax, it was gold.
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"Gooooooooooooooooal!"
"My God! Yang Yang! It's him again!"
Only three minutes had passed at the Amsterdam ArenA when the eruption came.
Yang Yang, cutting in sharply from the left wing, shifted the ball onto his right foot and unleashed a precise low shot into the bottom corner, beating the Heracles Almelo goalkeeper cleanly. It was his tenth goal of the Eredivisie season — and it had arrived almost before the match had even begun to breathe.
The commentator's voice, rising over the roar of over 50,000 fans, summed up the moment: "Heracles can't contain him at all tonight. Yang Yang is everywhere — sharp, alert, unstoppable."
It was Saturday, October 15, 19:18 local time in the Netherlands. Ajax were hosting Heracles Almelo in the eighth round of the Eredivisie, and from the opening whistle, it was clear who would dictate the match.
Yang Yang's early goal set the tone. The stadium shook with noise as fans leapt from their seats, chanting his name. His teammates surrounded him in celebration, and on the sideline, head coach Ronald Koeman couldn't hide his excitement. He pumped both fists into the air, nodding furiously — a silent affirmation of everything he already believed: when Yang Yang was in form, Ajax could overwhelm anyone.
And the team played like it.
Even after the goal, Ajax kept pressing high, forcing Heracles deeper and deeper into their own half. The visitors tried to organize defensively, but their resistance barely lasted a quarter of an hour.
In the 18th minute, Yang Yang dropped deep to receive the ball and played a sharp pass wide to Maicon on the right flank. The Brazilian full-back switched play across to the left, where Maxwell had joined the attack. With time and space, the left-back whipped in a low cross to the edge of the six-yard box, where Yaya Touré arrived to guide the ball home.
2–0. Ajax were in full control.
Heracles, rocked by two early goals, were visibly shaken. Their defensive lines loosened, and their midfield failed to recover second balls. Sixteen minutes later, Ajax struck again.
This time, it was Steven Pienaar who created the opportunity with a clever through ball. Angelos Charisteas — clinical in the final third — drifted into the right channel and squared it back across goal, where Pienaar had continued his run to finish calmly. 3–0 before halftime.
Ajax returned to the dressing room with their heads held high. Koeman praised their fluidity, encouraged the team to keep pushing for more, and emphasized maintaining concentration. He saw in this match not just a chance for three points — but a statement.
In the second half, Heracles tried to slow the tempo, but Ajax would not be denied.
By the 59th minute, it was Yang Yang again. Yaya Touré, operating just outside the penalty area, spotted his run and floated a perfectly weighted chip behind the back line. Yang Yang timed his movement brilliantly, brought the ball down with his chest under pressure, swiveled onto his left foot, and rifled a volley into the top corner.
4–0. His second of the night.
The Amsterdam ArenA exploded once more. Chants of "Yang Yang! Yang Yang!" echoed across the tiers as fans celebrated the artistry and instinct of their star forward.
But he wasn't finished.
In the 67th minute, Yang Yang dropped into midfield to collect a loose ball. Driving forward with power and precision, he accelerated past two Heracles midfielders, glided to the top of the penalty arc, and curled a right-footed shot around the diving goalkeeper.
Hat-trick. 5–0.
Heracles were broken.
Koeman, recognizing the job was done, substituted Yang Yang in the 70th minute, sending on Ryan Babel. The entire stadium stood as one — a full standing ovation, thunderous applause, and a chorus of cheers accompanied the number eleven off the pitch. Yang Yang nodded in appreciation, clapping back at the fans as he exited.
But Ajax's appetite hadn't faded.
In the 78th minute, Wesley Sneijder sliced open the defense with a pinpoint pass to Charisteas, who finished coolly from close range for 6–0.
Five minutes later, Maicon curled in a dangerous cross from the right wing, and Charisteas, rising above his marker, buried a powerful header into the net.
7–0.
Even in stoppage time, Ajax kept pushing. In the 90th minute, Charisteas — involved yet again — headed the ball back into space just outside the box. Sneijder, arriving at full pace, struck a thunderous shot past the helpless keeper.
8–0.
The final whistle was met with unrestrained celebration. Fans danced in the aisles, waving scarves and flags, chanting the team's name. This was the biggest win in the Eredivisie so far this season — a complete performance from start to finish.
In the post-match press conference, Ronald Koeman was radiant.
"This team is confident, fearless," he told reporters. "We're not thinking about who's next — only about how we'll play. We believe we can beat anyone."
When asked about Yang Yang, Koeman paused, then smiled.
"I've run out of words to describe him. No adjective seems strong enough anymore. Twelve goals, six assists — and we're only eight matches in. For me, he's already one of the best players in the world."
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Ajax's crushing 8–0 win over newly promoted Heracles Almelo didn't just grab three points — it sent a shockwave through Dutch football.
But even more astonishing than the scoreline was Yang Yang's individual performance. With another hat-trick to his name — his second of the season — the 18-year-old forward had once again taken center stage.
Last season, when Yang Yang made his breakthrough, he maintained a steady scoring rhythm but didn't record his first hat-trick until the closing rounds of the league campaign. Even then, most of his goals had come in braces or singles — efficient, consistent, but not explosive.
Now, just eight Eredivisie rounds into the new season, Yang Yang had already scored two hat-tricks and tallied twelve goals in eight matches. His scoring rate was nothing short of astonishing — a goal every 60 minutes on average. Dutch media began using terms like "clinical machine" and "unpredictable finisher", while fans across the country lit up the forums with debate.
Some began to wonder if this would be a historic season — the kind that gets remembered decades later. Whispers grew louder that Yang Yang could surpass the tallies of greats like Ruud van Nistelrooy, who had scored 35 goals in the 1998–99 season, or Mateja Kežman, who had reached 35 in 2002–03.
If Yang Yang stayed healthy and maintained form, 30 goals no longer seemed like a ceiling — but a benchmark.
Elsewhere, in a key clash, PSV Eindhoven hosted AZ Alkmaar and won 3–0 at the Philips Stadion. The scoreline, however, didn't reflect the competitiveness of the match.
Louis van Gaal's Alkmaar were reduced to ten men midway through the first half after a controversial red card, which forced them to sit deeper and absorb relentless pressure. Eventually, PSV's numerical advantage took its toll, and they secured the win. It was a vital result for Hiddink's side, trying to claw their way back into the title race.
For Yang Yang, there was a silver lining in Alkmaar's defeat: Shota Arveladze, his closest rival in the Golden Boot race, failed to score. The Georgian striker remained on ten goals, while Yang Yang surged ahead with twelve, reclaiming sole possession of top spot on the scoring charts.
Feyenoord also enjoyed a dominant home win, dispatching FC Groningen 4–1 at De Kuip. Both Dirk Kuyt and Salomon Kalou found the net, each adding a goal to their season tally. Yet compared to their previous campaign, both had underwhelmed so far.
Kuyt, last season's second top scorer, had reached only seven goals, while Kalou had managed just four. Part of the dip was attributed to the managerial change and tactical shifts under Erwin Koeman, but observers also noted a dip in individual sharpness. Their rhythm, especially in combination play, seemed off compared to the fluidity of the previous season.
By contrast, Klaas-Jan Huntelaar was beginning to find form.
The Heerenveen striker — often overlooked amid discussions of Kuyt, Arveladze, and Yang Yang — scored a hat-trick of his own in a 3–0 away win over NAC Breda. That brought his total to seven goals, quietly positioning him within striking distance of the leaders.
With one-third of the first half of the season now complete, the Dutch Golden Boot race was heating up.
At the top stood Yang Yang — 12 goals, two hat-tricks, and a league-leading Ajax team behind him. Right behind were Arveladze (10), Kuyt and Huntelaar (7), and Kalou trailing slightly.
The road ahead was long, but one thing had become clear to everyone watching the Eredivisie this year: the race would run through Amsterdam, and it would run through Yang Yang.
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Fresh off their record-breaking 8–0 victory in the league, Ajax entered the new week riding a wave of momentum. Confidence was high, training sessions were sharp, and spirits inside the dressing room had rarely been stronger.
Midweek brought the return of European nights at the Amsterdam ArenA. It was the third round of the UEFA Champions League group stage, and Ajax were set to host Swiss side FC Thun.
Though not a traditional powerhouse, Thun had shown flashes of resilience in the opening rounds. Still, this was a match Ajax had marked as essential — not just for points, but to tighten their grip on the group standings. And with Arsenal trailing closely behind, there was no room for complacency.
Ronald Koeman didn't rotate much. He fielded a strong starting eleven, intent on keeping rhythm and building continuity.
The strategy paid off quickly.
In the tenth minute, Maicon surged down the right flank, beating his marker and firing a low cross into the box. Yang Yang, perfectly positioned at the edge of the six-yard area, latched onto it with a clean, first-time strike to beat the Thun goalkeeper. 1–0, and Ajax were off to another flying start.
It was Yang Yang's second goal of the Champions League campaign, and another reminder that his brilliance was not confined to domestic football.
Ajax maintained control, dictating tempo through the midfield trio of Pienaar, Sneijder, and Yaya Touré. Their passing triangles opened space on the flanks, and Thun's back line found themselves retreating deeper and deeper.
In the 36th minute, Ajax struck again. Steven Pienaar threaded a delicate pass through the defense, and Greek striker Yannis Anastasiou made no mistake, slotting the ball low into the corner to double the lead.
2–0, and the Amsterdam crowd was loving every second.
After the break, Ajax continued to press, with Yang Yang now operating more frequently on the right, where his link-up play with Maicon created a persistent threat. He constantly dragged defenders wide, opened pockets for midfield runners, and kept the Swiss defense on edge.
In the 60th minute, Koeman made his first change. Nicklas Bendtner, the tall Danish striker still finding his feet at the senior level, replaced Anastasiou at center forward.
From that point on, the focus shifted. Yang Yang, Sneijder, and Pienaar — aware of Bendtner's hunger for a goal — began working deliberately to feed him. Crosses came more frequently, passing patterns around the box began to revolve around the striker's movement, and opportunities started to form.
Finally, in the 75th minute, the moment came.
Yang Yang drove at the defense, cutting inside and playing a quick one-two with Sneijder, who released a well-timed through ball. Bendtner, charging between two defenders, met it with composure and slotted it past the goalkeeper for his first-ever Champions League goal.
Overcome with emotion, the young Dane slid to his knees near the corner flag, hands to the sky, staying down for a few seconds longer than usual. The entire team rushed over to celebrate with him — a moment of pure joy for a player who had waited patiently for his breakthrough.
When play resumed, Bendtner seemed possessed. He chased every loose ball, shouted for every cross, and twice came close to scoring again. His confidence had clearly surged — though no further goals would come before full time.
The match ended 3–0. A clean, professional win.
Across the continent, in the other Group B fixture, Arsenal defeated Sparta Prague 2–0, with Thierry Henry finding the net again to keep the Gunners in second place behind Ajax.
With three rounds played, the shape of the group had become clear.
Ajax and Arsenal stood out as the top contenders, each likely to progress to the knockout stages. Meanwhile, Thun and Sparta Prague seemed destined to battle for third, which would drop them into the UEFA Cup knockout phase.
Two different races had now formed in Group B — one for survival, the other for supremacy.
And Ajax, for now, remained firmly in control of the latter.
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After their midweek Champions League victory over Thun, Ajax immediately shifted focus to domestic matters, preparing for what was widely seen as their most challenging league fixture so far.
The ninth round of the Eredivisie would see them travel to the Philips Stadion to face PSV Eindhoven, a direct rival in the Dutch title race and a team rejuvenated under the pragmatic guidance of Guus Hiddink.
Though Eindhoven had lost key players during the summer — most notably Van Bommel, Park Ji-sung, and Young-Pyo Lee — Hiddink had responded by restructuring the team with a new defensive identity. The flair and free-flowing attack of previous seasons had given way to compact lines, disciplined pressing, and conservative tactical setups. What they lacked in creativity, they made up for in control.
The results spoke for themselves.
PSV had maintained a perfect home record at the Philips Stadion across all competitions. In the Eredivisie, they had taken maximum points at home. In Europe, they had begun their group campaign with a 1–0 win over Schalke and followed it with a resilient 0–0 draw against AC Milan — at the San Siro, no less.
The goalless stalemate in Milan, against one of Europe's elite clubs, sent a clear message. Eindhoven's new-look defense was difficult to break down. Earlier, AZ Alkmaar — typically one of the more fluid attacking sides in the league — had been dismantled 3–0 in the same stadium.
Hiddink had turned his team into a fortress.
Now, Ajax were arriving with the best attack in the Netherlands — a frontline led by Yang Yang, who had already scored twelve goals in eight matches, including two hat-tricks. The midfield trio of Sneijder, Pienaar, and Yaya Touré had become increasingly synchronized. Maicon and Maxwell provided width and overlapping threat. And the team had been riding high after thrashing Heracles 8–0 and cruising to a 3–0 win in Europe.
The stakes couldn't be higher.
For weeks, media outlets had been building the tension around this fixture, calling it the "clash of styles." It was more than just first vs. second, or attack vs. defense — it was a clash of identities.