Two sides in dire need of a victory face off at the Mandemakers Stadion on Saturday when RKC Waalwijk play host to fellow strugglers Sparta Rotterdam.
Both teams have only managed one league victory apiece this term and currently find themselves in the lower echelons of the Eredivisie table.
Match preview
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Sparta Rotterdam ended a run of three straight defeats with a 1-1 stalemate against Groningen at the Het Kasteel on Sunday.
Henk Fraser's men fell behind to a Cyril Ngonge strike in the 28th minute but restored parity five minutes later thanks to Bryan Smeets.
Following a poor start to the season, De Kasteelheren remain in the relegation zone heading into this weekend's game, albeit only on goal difference.
Awaiting them next is a clash versus an opposing side who they have beaten in four of the last five meetings, including both of last season's encounters.
Waalwijk picked up a second consecutive point courtesy of an impressive 2-2 draw versus Feyenoord at De Kuip on Saturday.
Joseph Oosting's men fought back from a Jens Toornstra opener to take the lead heading into half time thanks to Jens Odgaard and Vurnon Anita, but Guus Til restored parity early in the second half.
Like their visitors, Saturday's hosts have also managed just seven points from their opening nine outings but are two places ahead due to a superior goal difference.
After narrowly preserving their top-flight status last season, RKC must turn a corner in the coming weeks to avoid being drawn into another relegation scrap.
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Team News
Portuguese goalkeeper Joel Pereira will play no part for the home side due to a hernia problem, while David Min misses out through a knee injury.
Twenty-nine-year-old Richard van der Venne was forced off with an ankle injury earlier in the month and has not featured since then.
Having fully served his three-game suspension, Aaron Meijers is eligible to feature this weekend and is expected to be named in the starting XI.
Tom Beugelsdijk made his return to action last time out following his recovery from a thigh problem and could also be deemed fit enough to get the nod right from the off this time.
RKC Waalwijk possible starting lineup:
Vaessen; Touba, Meulensteen, Gaari, Buttner; Anita, Azhil, Bel Hassani; Odgaard, Bakari, Kramer
Sparta Rotterdam possible starting lineup:
Okoye; Meijers, Heylen, Vriends, Abels; Auassar, Osman, Thy; Van Crooy, Smeets, Emegha
We say: RKC Waalwijk 1- 1 Sparta Rotterdam
Neither team has made an ideal start to the campaign and securing all three points here could be a turning point. We are predicting the sides to cancel each other out, resulting in a share of the spoils.
Top 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 RKC Waalwijk win with a probability of 41.22%. A win for Sparta Rotterdam had a probability of 31.88% and a draw had a probability of 26.9%.
The most likely scoreline for a RKC Waalwijk win was 1-0 with a probability of 11.13%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (8.58%) and 2-0 (7.48%). The likeliest Sparta Rotterdam win was 0-1 (9.51%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.77%). The actual scoreline of 1-0 was predicted with an 11.1% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted a 1-0 win for RKC Waalwijk in this match.
