Sparta Rotterdam and Almere City are back in Eredivisie action when they go head-to-head at the Sparta Stadion Het Kasteel on Saturday afternoon in gameweek nine.
Both teams came away empty-handed from their most recent outings just before the international break and will be looking to get back on track with all three points in this weekend's encounter.
Match preview
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Sparta Rotterdam kicked off the new campaign with three consecutive stalemates before finally recording their first win at the fourth time of asking in a 2-1 victory over Willem II at the Koning Willem II Stadion on August 31.
Jeroen Rijsdijk's men saw their unbeaten run come to an end against Go Ahead Eagles in their subsequent involvement and have since picked up four points from the next nine available after a 2-1 defeat to reigning champions PSV Eindhoven last time out.
De Rood-Witte Gladiatoren made a bright start to the contest and took the lead inside 10 minutes through Tobias Lauritsen before an Arno Verschueren own goal and Luuk de Jong's strike three minutes apart turned the game around.
Sparta's up-and-down start to the campaign has yielded 10 points from nine matches to leave them ninth in the Eredivisie table, a point shy of Willem II in the race for the final Conference League playoff spot heading into their next outing.
While their attacking output definitely still needs some brushing up, a lack of clean sheets has been the major letdown for Sparta this term, as they are yet to record one since an opening-day goalless draw against Heracles in August.
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Almere City's season so far has been nothing short of a disappointment as they headed into the two-week hiatus for international duty on a run of three straight defeats, the most recent of which came against Willem II.
Hedwiges Maduro's men failed to find the back of the net for the fourth straight game last time out and have only managed two strikes from their nine matches—at least three fewer than any other team in the division.
De Zwarte Schapen's struggles this term have hardly been surprising given how last season ended with no victories from any of their final 12 league encounters dating back to February's victory over PEC Zwolle.
Almere would go on to beat the drop by five points, but their current trajectory has them on course for a sterner relegation challenge as they already sit bottom but one in the standings, five points off safety.
Still looking for their first goal away from home this season, Saturday's visitors will need to up the ante at the top end of the pitch to stand any chance of ending a nine-game winless run on the road in competitive outings.
Team News
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Kayky still awaits his first appearance for Sparta since joining on a season-long loan deal from Manchester City as he continues to deal with a torn knee ligament.
Teo Quintero is currently nursing a meniscus injury and also misses out for the home side, but Jonathan de Guzman is back in contention after recovering from a muscle problem.
Forward Tobias Lauritsen is a doubt for this weekend's encounter after coming off with an injury scare in the first half of the defeat to PSV last time out.
Thom Haye was on target for Indonesia during the break and will be looking to deliver the goods for Almere as he remains without a club goal since early April.
Twenty-three-year-old Theo Barbet is expected to retain his place in the visitors' lineup after being handed his first starting appearance of the campaign against Willem II.
Sparta Rotterdam possible starting lineup:
Olij; Van der Kust, Eerdhuijzen, Meissen, Bakari; Metinho, Clement; Nassoh, Verschueren, Neghli; Lauritsen
Almere City possible starting lineup:
Bakker; Akujobi, Visus, Barbet, Zagaritis; Haye, Tahiri; Kadile, Van de Kamp, Delaurier-Chaubet; Robinet
We say: Sparta Rotterdam 1-0 Almere City
Almere City have been poor at both ends of the pitch, and it is hard to see them coming away with a positive result from Saturday's affair.
We are backing Sparta to come out on top, albeit by only a narrow margin in what should be a nervy and cagey clash in Rotterdam.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
