Feyenoord play host to PEC Zwolle on Wednesday evening with the opportunity to move level on points with current Eredivisie leaders Ajax.
Meanwhile, the visitors make the journey to De Kuip having put together a three-match unbeaten streak in the Dutch top flight, moving the club seven points clear of the relegation zone.
Match preview
© Reuters
On the back of losing to Vitesse before the New Year break, Feyenoord boss Dick Advocaat would have stressed to his players that they could ill-afford any more slip-ups if they wanted to keep pace with Ajax and PSV Eindhoven.
However, the 2-2 draw between their title rivals at the weekend has given Advocaat's side an opportunity to capitalise on further dropped points now that they are within three points of first place.
Remarkably, Feyenoord are the only team in the top 11 to prevail in their last two matches, and a third victory in succession would keep the pressure on the teams above them.
Sunday's derby at Sparta Rotterdam was viewed as a potential banana skin, but the 2-0 victory against their neighbours will only give this side added belief that they can challenge for their first league crown since 2017.
Nicolai Jorgensen ended his two-and-a-half-month wait for a goal in that game, and the Denmark international will now hope to find some consistency during the second half of the campaign.
While PEC Zwolle are the clear underdogs heading into this contest, recording five points from three games has eased any immediate concerns regarding relegation.
The goalless draw against bottom-side Emmen before the end of 2020 frustrated John Stegeman and his squad, but they have made amends in the games against ADO Den Haag and AZ Alkmaar.
Sunday's draw against the latter represented their eighth stalemate in 15 games, although it was a result which extended their advantage over 17th-placed Willem II to eight points.
Pelle Clement netted his first goal of the season during that fixture, and PEC Zwolle now have 10 players who have scored three goals or fewer in the Eredivisie.
Feyenoord Eredivisie form: DDWLWW
Feyenoord form (all competitions): DLWLWW
PEC Zwolle Eredivisie form: DWLDWD
PEC Zwolle form (all competitions): WLLDWD
Team News
Eric Botteghin is in line to replace Uros Spajic in the centre of the Feyenoord defence.
Jorgensen could get the nod over Lucas Pratto down the middle of the attack, although Bryan Linssen is an option after remaining as an unused substitute at the weekend.
Having had an extra day to prepare for this fixture, Stegeman may opt against making any changes to his PEC Zwolle side.
While Yuta Nakayama has been pushing for a recall since the back end of 2020, the Japanese midfielder could have to make do with a spot among the replacements.
Feyenoord possible starting lineup:
Marsman; Geertruida, Botteghin, Senesi, Malacia; Toornstra, Fer, Diemers; Berghuis, Jorgensen, Sinisterra
PEC Zwolle possible starting lineup:
Zetterer; Wermeskerken, Kersten, Polen, Paal; Saymak, Strieder, Huiberts; Reijnders, Clement, Duinen
We say: Feyenoord 3-1 PEC Zwolle
Having held AZ at the weekend, PEC Zwolle will be respected by their hosts on Wednesday night. However, that should not change the end result at De Kuip, and we expect the home side to record a comfortable win over the mid-table side.
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 Feyenoord win with a probability of 61.09%. A draw had a probability of 20.7% and a win for PEC Zwolle had a probability of 18.19%.
The most likely scoreline for a Feyenoord win was 2-1 with a probability of 9.95%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (9.65%) and 1-0 (9.37%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (9.66%), while for a PEC Zwolle win it was 1-2 (4.98%). The actual scoreline of 1-0 was predicted with a 9.4% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Feyenoord would win this match.
