PEC Zwolle will be hoping to maintain their unbeaten run when they host AZ Alkmaar in the Eredivisie. The hosts enter this match following a scoreless draw with neighborhood rivals Go Ahead Eagles, while Alkmaar is looking to rebound after a humiliating defeat in Europe on Thursday.
Preview (PEC Zwolle vs. AZ Alkmaar)
After a 1-1 draw with their arch-rivals Go Ahead Eagles, PEC Zwolle is currently three games unbeaten in the Eredivisie. However, the hosts’ performance in the first IJsselderby of the season should have been far better. Eliano Reijnders’ goal gave Zwolle the lead after 52 minutes after a dominant first half in terms of ball possession. However, Johnny Jansen’s team was unable to hold on against the 10-man Eagles. Oliver Edvardsen late in the game gave the visitors the lead back.
After placing second in the Eerste Divisie in 2022–23, Jansen’s team is back at the top of Dutch football after missing out on the second-tier title to Heracles owing to a worse goal differential. Both clubs finished the season with 85 points after 38 league games. With the goal of returning to the Eredivisie after a one-year hiatus, Zwolle spent ten years there from 2012 to 2022 with the help of their present group of players. The Blauwvingers are counting on Dutch striker Ferdy Druijf to score goals this season. The 25-year-old has already contributed to three goals in the Eredivisie since joining on loan.
AZ Alkmaar, despite having a perfect start to their domestic season, made headlines this week for all the wrong reasons after losing their inaugural Europa Conference League group stage game 4-3 to Zrinjski Mostar. Myron van Brederode, Sven Mijnans, and Dani de Wit scored for AZ on Thursday night. They made the difficult journey to Eastern Europe, giving them a three-goal lead at the half. However, an extraordinary collapse in the second half gave the Bosnian team their first-ever win.
With games against two freshly promoted teams coming up over the next week, Pascal Jansen will be pleased that his team has the opportunity to get back in the game so soon after such a horrifying loss on the continent. Alkmaar is aiming to keep its perfect domestic record. They secured a comfortable 2-0 victory over Sparta Rotterdam at the AFAS Stadion last weekend. AZ joined PSV Eindhoven and FC Twente as the only teams with all four wins from their opening four games.
Team News
Ryan Thomas has been battling a respiratory ailment and hasn’t yet been able to train with the first team. Due to a knee injury, left-back Lennart Czyborra has not played since the 1-0 victory over FC Utrecht. As a result, Anselmo Garcia McNulty of Spain is expected to play on the left side of the home team’s defense. Bram van Polen, a seasoned defender, is able to resume play after recovering from an injury received against Almere City. Goalkeeper Kenneth Vermeer is not yet ready to make his club debut.
Prior to Sunday’s game against Zwolle, AZ Alkmaar’s medical room will be particularly busy due to the absence of young players like Ernest Poku and Mexx Meerdink due to injuries. Jens Odgaard might make his third Eredivisie start of the season. Jansen is anticipated to make changes to the team that was humiliated in the Conference League. After consecutive losses at the start of the season, PEC Zwolle has begun to adjust to life in the Eredivisie. The hosts will be confident of taking advantage of an AZ team that may be out of sorts. After losing to Zrinjski on Thursday night, Alkmaar just needs to bounce back, and we think the visitors will do just that to extend their winning streak to five league games.
PEC Zwolle 1 – 2 AZ Alkmaar
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