Round four of the 2023-24 Eredivisie season sees FC Volendam entertain the challenge of FC Twente at the Kras Stadion on Sunday afternoon.
Both teams are on a run of two straight defeats heading into this weekend's encounter and will be keen to get back on track with all three points here.
Match preview
FC Twente saw their Conference League dream come to an end in a 1-0 defeat against Fenerbahce as the Turkish giants ran 6-1 winners on aggregate over two legs.
Off the back of a relatively uneventful first half, Edin Dzeko opened the scoring from the penalty spot 27 minutes into the second period to put Joseph Oosting's men to the sword.
Despite suffering heartbreak on the continental front, the Tukkers have kicked off their domestic campaign on a high with two wins from as many games, which currently sees them occupy third place in the Eredivisie table.
Lying in store next is the task of facing off against an opposing outfit who have won just one of the last six editions of this fixture since 2008, losing the other five.
Having recently suffered a first defeat away from home in 10 matches, Sunday's visitors set out to avoid back to back losses on the road for the first time since February.
FC Volendam fell to a comprehensive 4-1 defeat against Go Ahead Eagles when the sides went head-to-head at De Adelaarshorst on August 19.
Goals from Bas Kuipers, Oliver Edvardsen and Willum Willumsson left Matthias Kohler's men with a huge task at half time before Daryl van Mieghem pulled one back, after which Philippe Rommens sealed the deal.
As a result, Het Andere Oranje currently sit just outside the bottom three in the standings, ahead of relegation danger only on goal difference.
With three wins from their most recent four home league outings, Sunday's hosts will back themselves to get their season up and running with yet another triumph in front of their fans.
Team News
FC Volendam's Robert Muhren will serve the second of a two-game suspension he incurred following his sending-off against Vitesse in the opening fixture.
Carel Eiting is also unavailable for the hosts through an illness which has seen the midfielder fail to participate in any game this term.
Daryl van Mieghem recently completed a move to Eerste Divisie side ADO Den Haag, ruling him out of contention for this weekend's contest.
Twenty-six-year-old Gijs Smal remains on the sidelines with a knee injury and is still a considerable way off making his return to action.
Robin Propper will be aiming to come up trumps for the away side once again after putting on a man-of-the-match display in the most recent meeting between Sunday's opponents.
FC Volendam possible starting lineup:
Backhaus; Murkin, Plat, Mbuyamba, Payne; Mirani, Twigt; Johnson, Ould-Chikh, El Kadiri; Zeefuik
FC Twente possible starting lineup:
Unnerstall; Brenet, Hilgers, Propper, Rots; Sadilek, Reeger, Steijn; Rots, Ugalde, Van Wolfswinkel
We say: FC Volendam 0-2 FC Twente
Twente will be seeking to bounce back from their disappointment in midweek by securing a third straight league victory. The away side boast the significantly better squad on paper compared to their hosts, and we fancy them to carry the day.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
