Netherlands - Eredivisie: AZ Alkmaar vs FeyenoordAZ Alkmaar are looking to recover from the heavy defeat at the Emirates and Ronald Koeman’s team need to win this match in order to stay close to the leaders. Feyenoord are in a similar situation after the 5:1 defeat to Ajax in Klassiker, although they are five points clear of AZ at the moment.
The season turning into a failure
Everyone though AZ would quickly recover from the poor start of the season and rediscover the form that had served them so well last season but that simply didn’t happen. After winning the Eredivisie title last term, they became the team to beat and it seems the players cannot really cope with the pressure. Six defeats in 12 league games and just two points from four Champions League games are by no means a decent result, but the big problem is the team are showing no signs of improvement. Regardless of all the problems, the hosts simply have to try and win this game and if they could score 2 against Ajax, they can do it all over again. Sportingbet is paying 1.80 on AZ to score over 1.5 goals.
After star striker Mounir El Hamdaoui picked up an injury, Moussa Dembele and Graziano Pelle were paired in attack, but it was nevertheless youngster Jeremain Lens who scored against both Groningen and Arsenal. The striker is likely to start this match since both Dembele and Pelle are underperforming and we see a good value in backing Lens to score at 3.25 offered by Bet365.
Feyenoord hammered in the Klassiker
Feyenoord had a tremendous start to the season under Mario Been and there were even talks about the team entering the title race. However, they were quickly brought to reality after losing to Ajax 5:1 and now face a very difficult task against AZ. The visitors are aware the win over direct rivals for the high league position would take them 8 points clear of AZ and we expect them to continue playing attacking football. Feyenoord failed to score only once on the travels this season and you should seriously consider backing both teams to score at 1.67 offered by Bet365.
Midfielder Stefan Babovic and keeper Rob van Dijk are suspended for this clash after picking up red cards in the Klassiker and they will be replaced by El Ahmadi and Darley respectively, while striker Sekou Cisse returns to the starting line-up after missing the last three games through suspension. Young winger Wijnaldum managed to shake off minor injury and he will keep his place in the starting line-up, with Andwele Slory starting on the opposite wing.
Betting verdict
Both teams are eager to make amends for the heavy defeats and we are confident they will be looking to win this game. Both AZ and Feyenoord have got a lot of attacking potential, while their defences haven’t been impressive lately, thus over 2.5 goals looks like the logical choice.
Looking for livestream! Here it is! Our tip: Bet 7 on Over 2.5 goals
Odds -125 at
Bookmaker: BetCRIS
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