ADO Den Haag are set to host Heerenveen on Saturday, with Ruud Brood's side hoping to put their 6-0 defeat to Sparta Rotterdam behind them as the new coach suffered a devastating loss during his first game in charge.
Meanwhile, Heerenveen have got their 2020-21 campaign off to an impressive start, conjuring up five victories in their opening nine games to leave themselves sixth place in the table.
Match preview
Den Haag currently find themselves in the relegation playoff places, having secured just one win this season - a narrow 2-1 victory against VVV-Venlo back in early October.
Since then, they have only managed to pick up a single point, with their defensive record particularly worrying this season.
De Residentieclub have conceded 26 league goals already this campaign, with many of those coming in their latest 6-0 loss at the Het Kasteel.
During the game, both Lennart Thy and Mario Engels got a brace, while Sven Mijnans and Abdou Harroui were also able to get on the scoresheet, resulting in a humiliating defeat for the visitors.
An unlikely win against Heerenveen this weekend would be just their second of the season and could see them climb up to 15th, moving out of the danger zone in the process.
However, Johnny Jansen's side will be eager to pick up three points on Saturday, following their disappointing 1-1 draw against RKC Waalwijk last week.
The visitors went ahead in the 19th minute, before Sieben Dewaele was sent off for a late challenge on Cyril Ngonge, allowing Waalwijk to equalise in the latter stages of the match.
Without a doubt, De Superfriezen will be hoping to get their season back on track, having won just twice in their previous seven league fixtures.
The two sides last met back in February this year, with the match ending in a 2-2 draw. However, it is worth noting that Heerenveen hold the upper hand when it comes to the head-to-head record - winning eight matches out of a possible 19 over the last decade, compared to Den Haag's four victories.
ADO Den Haag Eredivisie form: LLLDLW
ADO Den Haag form (all competitions): LLLWDL
Heerenveen Eredivisie form: DLWWLL
Heerenveen form (all competitions): DLWWWL
Team News
Den Haag are still without Peet Bijen, with the defender currently nursing an ankle injury. Although the 25-year-old is likely to miss Saturday's game, he could return for the following match next month.
New coach Brood is also expected to make a few changes to the team that suffered the 6-0 defeat last weekend, bringing in the likes of Jonas Arweiler and John Goossens.
Heerenveen, on the other hand, will be without Dewaele - after the midfielder was handed a straight red in their previous game against Waalwijk.
Both Arjen van der Heide and Jan Ras are also doubtful, with the former currently suffering with an ankle problem.
ADO Den Haag possible starting lineup:
Koopmans; Van Ewijk, Del Fabro, Pinas, Faye; Goossens, Rigo, Elmkies; Catic, Arweiler, Bourard
Heerenveen possible starting lineup:
Mulder; Floranus, Van Hecke, Bochniewicz, Woudenberg; Kongolo, Veerman; Nygren, Batista Meier, Van Bergen; Veerman
We say: ADO Den Haag 1-3 Heerenveen
Despite their poor result against Waalwijk, Heerenveen should have enough quality to conjure up a comfortable victory against the hosts. However, both teams have been particularly vulnerable in defence, so expect a high-scoring game on Saturday.
Top betting tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Heerenveen win with a probability of 50.8%. A win for ADO Den Haag had a probability of 26.55% and a draw had a probability of 22.7%.
The most likely scoreline for a Heerenveen win was 1-2 with a probability of 9.56%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-1 (7.98%) and 0-2 (7.42%). The likeliest ADO Den Haag win was 2-1 (6.63%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (10.28%). The actual scoreline of 1-1 was predicted with a 10.3% likelihood.
