The headline fixture in the final weekend of 2024 in the Eredivisie will come from Philips Stadion, where PSV Eindhoven will be playing host to Feyenoord on Sunday afternoon.
PSV will enter the Christmas break at the top of the league standings but a defeat here could see them holding just a three-point lead when they return for the second half of the campaign.
Match preview
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PSV are still the clear favourites to defend their title this season, but they saw their lead atop the table trimmed to six points last weekend when they suffered an against-the-odds 1-0 defeat to Heerenveen on the road.
That was the Boeren's second defeat of the season, one more than they suffered across the entire last term, and it followed a 1-0 loss to Brest in the Champions League four days earlier, marking the first time the side has lost two in a row since October 2022.
However, Peter Bosz's side resumed business as usual in midweek, when they smashed eight goals past lower league outfit Koninklijke HFC in the KNVB Beker to book their spot in the third round of the competition.
Notably, both PSV's defeats this month came on the road, while at home, they have been flawless in the top flight this entire season, winning all seven matches to date and scoring two or more goals in each of those victories.
The hosts have been particularly ruthless at Philips Stadion over the last couple of months, having scored 17 goals in their last three matches at the venue alone, while the last time they suffered defeat on home soil in the league competition was in November 2022.
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Meanwhile, Feyenoord were the only team that gave PSV any real competition for the title last season, ending seven points behind the Red and Whites while third-placed Twente finished 22 points off the champions.
De club aan de Maas managed to bring the current season's deficit to the leaders back into single digits last week with a commanding 5-2 victory over bottom-half opponent Heracles at home.
Santiago Gimenez delivered a standout performance in that victory, netting a first-half hat-trick to put the side 3-1 up at the break, before David Hancko and Suf Podgoreanu completed the rout in the second period.
Brian Priske's side then overcame MVV 2-1 in the KNVB Beker in midweek, marking their fourth successive win across all competitions and eighth match unbeaten dating back to the start of November.
While the hosts are unbeaten in the last five league games between these sides, the visitors came out on top in the Super Cup at the start of the season, took a point away from this venue in March, and knocked the league champs out of the domestic cup last season - all results that will give them huge confidence leading into this contest.
Team News
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PSV are expected to be without three players for this match due to injury, including long-term absentee Sergino Dest (cruciate ligament tear), as well as Adamo Nagalo (shoulder) and Couhaib Driouech (ankle).
Ricardo Pepi was handed a start in midweek and notched up two goals in the big cup win, which could see him retained in starting 11 this weekend, potentially at the expense of Luuk de Jong.
Feyenoord, meanwhile, could have as many as six players ruled out for this clash, including Quilindschy Hartman, Ayase Ueda and Julian Carranza, all of whom are expected to miss the start of the New Year as well.
Gijs Smal and Igor Paixao have both sat out the last three matches with hamstring injuries and are flagged as doubts, while Jordan Lotomba is likely to miss the remainder of the season with a fractured leg.
PSV Eindhoven possible starting lineup:
Benitez; Karsdorp, Flamingo, Boscagli, Junior; Saibari, Til, Veerman; Tillman, Pepi, Perisic
Feyenoord possible starting lineup:
Wellenreuther; Read, Beelen, Hancko, Bueno; Milambo, Zerrouki, Timber; Stengs, Gimenez, Moussa
We say: PSV Eindhoven 2-2 Feyenoord
This is a tricky situation for Feyenoord, as a win here could blow the title race wide open, but throwing caution to the wind could prove costly if they lose, as it would see them end the year 10 points behind the defending champions.
Still, the visitors do have a slight psychological advantage having won the Super Cup against this opponent at the start of the season, and we feel that with the form they are in, they may just be able to take something from this one.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Devesh Jaganath
