Leo Walker gets you up to date with information about all of the matches going on this weekend and what you can expect from them.

pelle 4The league leaders FC Twente will kick start the weekend’s action when taking on SC Cambuur in Leeuwarden on Friday evening. The hosts suffered defeat in the Friesland Derby last week when being beaten by neighbours, sc Heerenveen 2-1. The visitors suffered much better fortunes in round 8 when inflicting a 5-0 defeat on FC Groningen which saw them rise to the top of the Eredivisie table. In total the two have faced each other on nine occasions with FC Twente dominating this fixture, including the last encounter ten years ago when they defeated SC Cambuur 3-1 in the KNVB Cup.

Saturday’s action was due to start with ADO Den Haag taking on sc Heerenveen at the Kyocera Stadion and the controversial pitch. However following concerns raised by sc Heerenveen and a complaint made by Vitesse to the KNVB, following their midweek defeat in The Hague, the match has been postponed. This is the second time already this season that ADO Den Haag have had a home game abandoned and they will have the KNVB to answer too.

The last time Roda JC recorded a victory over PEC Zwolle was back in 2003, after Zwolle completed a double over them last season. This seasons former league leaders however are yet to win in four games including a goalless draw at home to NAC Breda last week, whilst Roda JC have incredibly recorded back to back 3-3 score line against sc Heerenveen and FC Utrecht. Kicking off at the same time will be bottom side NEC Nijmegen taking on the Go Ahead Eagles in Deventer. The Eagles suffered a 6-0 defeat in the Capital last week at the Amsterdam Arena and they will be looking to put that defeat behind them immediately. The visitors suffered last minute heartbreak in the De Gelderse Derby and remain without an Eredivisie win since February. The last time they recorded a victory in Deventer was back in 1980 whilst the clubs have not faced each other in 15 years.

Saturday’s action will conclude with a mid table clash when NAC Breda take on Heracles Almelo. A run of two victories and a draw for NAC Breda has seen them rise up the table and out of the bottom three, whilst Heracles continue from last season with the title of the most unpredictable side in the Eredivisie after inflicting a 4-1 defeat on RKC Waalwijk last week. In the last five visits to Breda, Heracles are undefeated after recording three victories and two draws.

Ajax will face their bogey side on Sunday when they welcome FC Utrecht to the Amsterdam Arena. The Eredivisie Champions, in the last six Eredivisie fixtures against FC Utrecht are yet to win, after being defeated on four occasions and being held to two draws last season. The two were involved in a 6-4 thriller in Utrecht back in November of 2011 which was the game of the 2011/12 season. The hosts have recorded four victories out of four games at home this season so will be confident of ending their winless drought against FC Utrecht.

Vitesse Arnhem had the opportunity to go to the top of the table on Wednesday however suffered their second defeat of the season on the unplayable pitch at the Kyocera Stadion. On Sunday they welcome Feyenoord to the Gelredome Stadion with the Rotterdammers performing very far from their best on their travels so far this season as they are winless in three games. Vitesse have a 100% record at home so Feyenoord will need to make significant improvements in their away performance should they wish to record a victory in Arnhem.

FC Groningen are the baddies of the Eredivisie season so far as they have received no less than 17 yellow and 8 red cards from the eight games so far. On Sunday they face off with AZ Alkmaar in a mid table clash at the Euroborg Stadion. AZ Alkmaar were involved in the Europa League on Thursday and after conceding late on were held to a 1-1 draw at home to PAOK. This will be the first Eredivisie game without a manager since the sacking of Gertjan Verbeek following last week’s victory of PSV. Talking of PSV, they will conclude the action of the weekend on Sunday when they entertain RKC Waalwijk at the Philips Stadion. The visitors currently reside in the bottom three and were heavily defeated at home last week at home to Heracles. Pressure is on Erwin Koeman to improve the performances of RKC Waalwijk; however they face a difficult task to get anything this round in Eindhoven. Philip Cocu’s side suffered defeat in AZ Alkmaar the week after inflicting an impressive 4-0 victory over Ajax; however they travelled to Ukraine on Thursday when recording a 2-0 victory over their opponents. It should be a routine victory for PSV, providing they suffer no fatigue from Thursday’s European expedition.




Leo Walker (36 Posts)