Seeking to end a five-game winless streak in all competitions, Willem II play host to fellow strugglers Sparta Rotterdam on Saturday.
Both sides have only managed one point from their last four league games apiece and could really do with all three points this weekend.
Match preview
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Willem II suffered defeat on the road for the second time in three days after a heavy 5-1 loss to FC Utrecht at the Stadion Galgenwaard on Sunday.
A Bart Ramselaar hat-trick put Fred Grim's men on the back foot before further goals from Mohamed Mallahi and Joris van Overeem sealed the deal.
After a bright start to the season, the Superkruiken have now dropped down to sixth place in the Eredivisie table with the teams in and around beginning to bear down on them.
Awaiting the Tilburg-based outfit next is a clash versus an opposing side who they have beaten in three of the last four meetings while also keeping a clean sheet in each of those triumphs.
Ahead of the international break, Saturday's hosts set out to get their season back on track, and securing all three points in this one would be a good starting point.
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Sparta's downward spiral continues as they were narrowly edged out 1-0 by Feyenoord when the sides clashed at the Het Kasteel on Sunday.
Henk Fraser's men were set for a share of the spoils against their city rivals but Cyriel Dessers came off the bench to score a 92nd-minute winner.
Consequently, De Kasteelheren remain in the bottom three but can take solace in the fact that they are only three points away from safety.
Having managed to amass just one point from their five outings on the road so far, Saturday's visitors are faced with yet another stern test away from home.
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Team News
Willem II's Wesley Spieringhs and Freek Heerkens are both ruled out with knee injuries and will play no part for the hosts
First-choice goalkeeper Robbin Ruiter will miss the game having not featured since the opening day due to a shoulder injury.
Lennart Thy found the back of the net in this fixture last season and the 29-year-old will be looking to come up trumps once again.
Thy is expected to be joined in attack by the duo of Emanuel Emegha and Adil Auassar who have struggled in front of goal so far, managing a combined total of one goal to date.
Willem II possible starting lineup:
Wellenreuther; Owusu, Jenssen, Bergstrom, Kohn; Saglam, Saddiki, Llonch; Kohlert, Okyere Wriedt, Nunnely
Sparta Rotterdam possible starting lineup:
Okoye; Masouras, Beugelsdijk, Vriends, Pinto; Abels, Mijnans, Smeets; Auassar, Emegha, Thy
We say: Willem II 2-1 Sparta Rotterdam
Willem II have hit a bump in the road of late and will be keen to resume normal service by claiming all three points in this one. We fancy them to emerge victorious, albeit by only a narrow margin.
Top tip
Adepoju Marvellous
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 Willem II win with a probability of 40.75%. A win for Sparta Rotterdam had a probability of 31.93% and a draw had a probability of 27.3%.
The most likely scoreline for a Willem II win was 1-0 with a probability of 11.49%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (8.44%) and 2-0 (7.51%). The likeliest Sparta Rotterdam win was 0-1 (9.88%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.92%). The actual scoreline of 0-3 was predicted with a 2.1% likelihood.
