Two places separate Willem II and NAC Breda in the Eredivisie table heading into Sunday's gameweek 13 meeting at Koning Willem II Stadion.
The international break was timely for both promoted clubs given the seeming dip in form, and they seek positive results after the hiatus.
Match preview
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Despite a commendable 2-1 win at AZ Alkmaar a fortnight ago, the international break came at the right time for Willem II, giving Peter Maes's team the chance to regroup after several indifferent Eredivisie results.
Success in Alkmaar ended a three-match winless sequence for Tricolores, where they secured one point from nine and failed to find the back of the net against Fortuna Sittard (0-0), Ajax (0-1) and FC Twente (0-1).
Goals from Kyan Vaesen and Cisse Sandra not only secured maximum points for the first time since October 4 — a 1-0 success over Almere City — but also ended the Super Pitchers' two-month Eredivisie wait to score two goals or more in one game since a 3-0 triumph against RKC Waalwijk in mid-September.
Keen to build on their victory before the international break, the ninth-placed Willem II seek back-to-back top-flight wins for the first time since September 2021, when they notched three consecutive triumphs — 2-1 victories against Groningen, Waalwijk and PSV.
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The promoted hosts enter this weekend in healthier form than their 11th-placed opponents, who lost two on the trot before the hiatus, falling to Heracles (2-0) and PSV Eindhoven (3-0).
Both league defeats followed a 2-1 shock domestic cup exit at the hands of Barendrecht, and they enter the post-international break league match keen to end a three-match losing run in all competitions.
Carl Hoefkens's men have been streaky in the last two months, as evidenced by the ongoing sequence of losses following a three-match winning league run, and they seek much-needed consistency heading into the next gameweeks before the mid-season break.
While the Breda outfit are unlikely to be sucked into a relegation battle — they are nine points clear of 17th-placed Almere — Sparta Rotterdam in the relegation playoff spot are four points behind the 11th-placed club.
Although previous results in this fixture may have little bearing on Saturday's outcome, NAC securing maximum points on their last two visits to Tilburg should boost the travelling support before this match-up between two of the season's promoted clubs.
Team News
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Willem have several injury absentees: Amar Fatah, Valentino Vermeulen, Khaled Razak, Dani Mathieu, Niels van Berkel and Erik Schouten are not anticipated to play any part on Sunday.
Sandra and Vaesen have netted four league goals after 12 gameweeks and aim to add to their tallies this weekend.
NAC do not have a lengthy injury list, with Cherrion Valerius and Aime Omgba the only expected absentees for the away side.
Dominik Janosek has set up three goals for the Breda-based club so far, and his creative instincts could be key for the club seeking their first Eredivisie win in three.
Willem II possible starting lineup:
Didillon-Hodl; Tirpan, Behounek, Jago; Doodeman, Bosch, Lachkar, Meerveld, Sigurgeirsson; Sandra, Vaesen
NAC Breda possible starting lineup:
Bielica; Lucassen, Greimi, Mahmutovic, Kemper; Jensen, Leemans, Balard; Paula, Omarsson, Sauer
We say: Willem II 1-0 NAC Breda
Despite beating Willem II on their last two visits to Tilburg, NAC's wretched road results since regaining promotion — one win, five defeats — leave much to be desired.
However, the hosts have not fared better on their turf, winning twice in six matches in front of their supporters.
Although the spoils could be shared in Sunday's game, the home side will back themselves to nick a marginal win for a third victory in front of their fans in 2024-25.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
