Eredivisie Preview: Round 6

Eredivisie fixtures/table

Saturday

PSV - Roda
Twente – Utrecht
Heerenveen – Groningen

PSV – Roda

The Eindhoven side currently sit third on the table with 11 points from five matches. They were held by Twente and VVV, but proved to be too strong for Ajax, Groningen and NAC.

Head coach Fred Rutten will be without injured winger Nordin Amrabat, while highly-rated playmaker Ibrahim Afellay is doubtful due to a hamstring injury. It will be interesting to see whether Rutten will start with in-form striker Danny Koevermans, or put his faith in Ola Toivonen again.

Roda are the Eredivisie's number 11 side after five matches. The Kerkrade outfit managed to pick up the full three points against NEC and recorded draws against Groningen and Heerenveen. However, they were beaten by Feyenoord and Vitesse in their last two matches. Man to watch for Roda will be Anouar Hadouir, who has been the star player at the Limburgers so far.

Prediction: 2-0

Twente – Utrecht

Twente have already collected 11 points from their first five matches and are keen to fight for the Eredivisie title this term. They currently sit fourth following the 1-1 draw against Feyenoord in their last match. The Enschede outfit do not have too much injury trouble, with defender Slobodan Rajkovic (hamstring) pretty much the only doubtful player. Brazilian striker Wellington could make his official debut for the Tukkers.

Utrecht are one of the five teams that are still unbeaten and are the Eredivisie's number five side at the moment, with ten points from four matches. They beat Sparta 2-0 in their last league match. Head coach Ton du Chatinier will rely on the individual brilliance of youngsters Dries Mertens and Ricky van Wolfswinkel up front to provide the Domstedelingen with goals.

Prediction: 2-0

Heerenveen – Groningen

The home side will be without Trond Sollied for the first time after giving the coach the sack a fortnight ago. The Friezen have made a disappointing start to this year's Eredivisie, collecting only four points from their first five league matches. They were beaten 2-0 by NAC two weeks ago and will be keen to bounce back with a win in the derby against rivals Groningen. Young forward Oussama Assaidi could make his debut for Heerenveen.

Like their opponents, Groningen have been far from impressive in their first five matches of the season. They have been beaten at home three times and picked up two draws away from the Euroborg. The Green-White Army find themselves back at spot 17 on the table. Head coach Ron Jans will probably hand new signings Morten Nordstrand and Thomas Enevoldsen a spot in the starting XI in an attempt to strengthen his attack.

Prediction: 1-1

ADO Den Haag – AZ

The Residentieclub are currently sitting eighth on the table with seven points from five matches. ADO recorded a 2-0 victory against RKC Waalwijk in their last Eredivisie match. Head coach Raymond Atteveld will be without long-term injury concerns Aleksandr Rankovic and Richard Knopper. Men to watch in the home side will be in-form forward Bogdan Milic and local hero Wesley Verhoek.

The reigning Eredivisie champions were beaten 3-0 in Den Haag last year and will be desperate to better that this term. They have won their last four league matches and have climbed to the number one position on the table. AZ coach Ronald Koeman does not have any serious injury trouble, but top scorer Mounir El Hamdaoui is doubtful due to a knee injury. Midfielder Rasmus Elm could make his official debut for the Alkmaar side.

Prediction: 1-3

Willem II – Feyenoord

The Tilburg outfit lost their previous match 2-1 against AZ, but were quite impressive against the Alkmaar side. Willem II have dropped to 16th spot on the table following their recent results. Ajax youngster Jan-Arie van der Heijden joined Willem on loan and is widely expected to make his official debut this weekend. Man to watch for the hosts will be Said Boutahar, who came through the ranks of the Feyenoord youth academy and has developed into the key player at Willem II.

Feyenoord have returned to winning ways this term under the guidance of new coach Mario Been. The Rotterdam giants have collected 11 points from their first five matches and are the Eredivisie's number two side at the moment. Been does not have any serious injury trouble and will be able to field his strongest XI in Tilburg. Midfielder Stefan Babovic does not yet have a work permit and will not be available. Jonathan de Guzman will be keen to continue his fine form in midfielder for Feyenoord. 

Prediction: 0-2

VVV – Heracles

Newly promoted VVV have been one of the surprises of this term so far. The Venlo side have yet to record their first victory of the season, but they are still unbeaten, with five consecutive draws. VVV find themselves at spot ten on the league table. Head coach Jan van Dijk will rely on the class of Keisuke Honda and Sandro Calabro up front to help his side to a good result.

Heracles are considered as the big favourite to drop to the Eerstedivisie by many, but the Almelo side have performed admirably well up until now. They have picked up seven points in their opening five matches and sit ninth on the table. They do not have too much injury trouble ahead of the away match against VVV. Man to watch for Heracles will be towering forward Bas Dost.

Prediction: 2-1

Sparta – RKC

Rotterdam side Sparta lost 2-0 last week against Utrecht and dropped to 14th spot on the table as a result. Head coach Frans Adelaar will be quite satisfied with the transfer of young striker Darko Bodul, who joined Sparta on loan from Ajax. Additionally, attacker Romano Denneboom is set to make his debut for the Rotterdam side.

The Waalwijk side are the only team that have yet to pick up their first point of the season. They have been beaten five consecutive times and sit last in the table. RKC have secured the services of a number of youngsters on loan and will be desperate to record a good result in Rotterdam. Men to watch will be Kemy Agustien and Charlison Benschop.

Prediction: 2-1

Ajax – NAC

The Amsterdam side have not been as impressive as they were hoping to be in the first few matches of this term. They have already spilled five points and sit sixth on the table with ten points.

Ajax beat Heracles 3-0 in their last league match. Head coach Martin Jol will be without the injured Gabri, while Jan Vertonghen, Maarten Stekelenburg and Dennis Rommedahl are doubtful due to physical problems. Striker Marko Pantelic could make his official debut for the Eredivisie giants, having joined them on a free transfer this summer.

NAC have recorded three victories, one draw and one defeat in their first five Eredivisie matches this term. The Breda side sit seventh on the table as a result. They shrugged off Heerenveen 2-0 in their last match and will be full of confidence travelling to Amsterdam. Former Ajax attacker Leonardo will most likely make his debut for NAC. Man to watch will be dynamic midfielder Edwin de Graaf, who has already scored two league goals this season.

Prediction: 3-1

NEC – Vitesse

The Nijmegen side have been far from consistent in the first few matches of this year. They impressed with a good 4-1 victory against Heerenveen, but played an abysmal match against Roda.

NEC sit 12th on the table at the moment, with four points from four matches. They will still be without quick winger Saidi Ntibazonkiza due to his refusal to play for them under his current terms. Belgian forward Bjorn Vleminckx will be keen to add his tally in the derby against Vitesse.

Vitesse have not exactly been consistent either in their first five matches. Nevertheless, they managed to beat Roda 4-3 in their last league game and climbed to 13th spot on the table. The Arnhem side do not have too much injury trouble and head coach Theo Bos will be able to field his strongest XI, aside from injured defender Jeroen Drost. In-form forward Santi Kolk will be keen to play a decisive role in the match against regional rivals NEC.

Prediction: 2-2

Stefan Coerts, Goal.com