Round 24 of the 2022-23 Eredivisie season sees FC Volendam and Emmen go head-to-head in a crucial relegation battle at the Kras Stadion on Saturday evening.
The home side will be looking to avoid a third defeat in four outings, while their visitors go in search of what would be only a second victory since the turn of the year.
Match preview
FC Volendam were beaten away from home for the second game running following a comprehensive 3-0 against NEC Nijmegen at Stadion de Goffert on Saturday.
Wim Jonk's men did well to come away from the first half unscathed before second-half goals from Ivan Marquez, Landry Dimata and Pedro Marques put them to the sword.
While Het Nieuwe Oranje remain 14th in the Eredivisie table, they are now just two points clear of the bottom three and will need to start looking anxiously over their shoulders.
Awaiting them next is the challenge of an opposing outfit who have emerged triumphant in just one of the most recent 10 editions of this fixture across all competitions.
Currently on a run of four wins and a draw across their last five home games, Saturday's hosts have turned their home ground into a fortress of late, which should give them confidence heading into this weekend's encounter.
Emmen played out a second consecutive share of the spoils courtesy of a thrilling 2-2 stalemate against Go Ahead Eagles at De Oude Meerdijk on Sunday.
Dick Lukkien's men trailed 1-0 and 2-1 to strikes from Jay Idzes and Bobby Adekanye, but they managed to draw level on either occasion through Jeroen Veldmate and Ole ter Haar Romeny.
With just three points picked up from their last five matches, the Kannibals have dropped to 16th place in the league standings, two points adrift of safety.
Having won just one of seven matches on the road leading up to Saturday's contest, the visitors will be keen to turn their away fortunes around.
Team News
Volendam's Bilal Ould-Chikh has sat out the last two games through illness, and the Dutchman will not play any part in Saturday's contest either.
Gaetano Oristanio is ineligible to feature for the hosts as the Italian serves a suspension having been sent off in a 1-1 draw against AZ Alkmaar last month.
Jeff Hardeveld, Mart Lieder and Maikel Kieftenbeld are currently down with long-term knee injuries, ruling them out of contention for Emmen.
Oussama Darfalou and Lorenzo Burnet are also sidelined for the away side, while 23-year-old Metehan Guclu misses out through an ankle problem.
FC Volendam possible starting lineup:
Stankovic; Murkin, Flint, Mirani, Mbuyamba, Plat; Antonucci, Da Silva, Eiting, Twigt; Muhren
Emmen possible starting lineup:
Van der Hart; Veendorp, Veldmate, Araujo, Bouchouari; Bernadou, Diemers, Vlak; Zivkovic, Hoesen, Romeny
We say: FC Volendam 1-1 Emmen
Both teams are under immense pressure heading into the game and we are expecting a nervy and cagey affair. We are also backing the sides to cancel each other out and settle for a point apiece in the end.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
