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Ajax
Eredivisie | Gameweek 28
Apr 30, 2022 at 5.45pm UK
Amsterdam Arena
PEC Zwolle

Ajax
3 - 0
PEC Zwolle

Tadic (30'), Klaassen (51', 80')
FT(HT: 1-0)

Preview: Ajax vs. PEC Zwolle - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Saturday's Eredivisie clash between Ajax and PEC Zwolle, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Ajax set out to record a seventh league victory in a row when they welcome PEC Zwolle to the Johan Cruyff ArenA on Saturday.

On the other hand, the visitors make the journey gunning for three wins on the bounce for the first time this term.


Match preview

Ajax manager Erik ten Hag celebrates in November 2021© Reuters

Ajax continued their march towards domestic glory with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over NEC at Stadion de Goffert on Saturday.

Erik ten Hag's men were in the ascendancy for the majority of the contest but failed to find a way through before Brian Brobbey popped up with an 86th-minute winner.

De Godenzonen remain four points clear of nearest challengers PSV Eindhoven at the top of the pile with just four games left to play.

Next up is a clash against an opposing side who have lost each of the last 12 meetings between the teams and are yet to taste victory in this fixture since 2014.

Having scored a whopping 57 goals in 15 home league games so far, Saturday's hosts will be looking to put on another attacking masterclass in front of their fans.

PEC Zwolle gave their survival hopes a huge boost following a 2-0 triumph over RKC Waalwijk at the Mandemakers Stadion on Saturday.

Goals in either half from Thomas van den Belt and Bram van Polen were enough to hand Dick Schreuder's men all three points.

As a result, the Blauwvingers have moved up to 16th place in the league standings and are now just two points shy of safety.

With three of their final four matches against teams in the top seven, Saturday's hosts are faced with an uphill task to avoid relegation from the top tier of Dutch football.

Ajax Eredivisie form:
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W

Ajax form (all competitions):
  • L
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • L
  • W

PEC Zwolle Eredivisie form:
  • W
  • L
  • L
  • L
  • W
  • W

PEC Zwolle form (all competitions):
  • L
  • L
  • L
  • L
  • W
  • W



Team News

Ajax's Dusan Tadic celebrates after they score their first goal on October 19, 2021© Reuters

Goalkeepers Remko Pasveer and Andre Onana are both unavailable for Ajax, meaning that Maarten Stekelenburg is in line to start between the sticks.

Zakaria Labyad and Sean Klaiber will also sit Saturday's game out through knee injuries, while Antony is yet to recover from an ankle problem.

Off the back of his impact off the bench last time out where he grabbed the decisive goal, Brian Brobbey will be pushing for a rare start.

Zwolle will be without the services of Sam Kersten and Samir Lagsir as they continue to nurse knee injuries, and the duo are joined on the sidelines by Dean Huiberts.

Having missed the last four games due to a muscle injury, 29-year-old Mustafa Saymak could make his return to action this weekend.

Ajax possible starting lineup:
Stekelenburg; Tagliafico, Blind, Schuurs, Timber; Taylor, Klaassen, Gravenberch; Tadic, Haller, Berghuis

PEC Zwolle possible starting lineup:
Lamprou; De Wit, Nakayama, Van Polen; Paal, Clement, Van den Belt, Anderson; Redan, Darfalou, Kastaneer


SM words green background

We say: Ajax 4-1 PEC Zwolle

Ajax boast a vastly superior squad, and it is hard to envisage any other outcome than a win for them. We expect a largely one-sided affair with the defending champions scoring plenty of goals en route to a comfortable victory.



Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting over 2.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Over 2.5:curl



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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 Ajax win with a probability of 88.95%. A draw had a probability of 7.4% and a win for PEC Zwolle had a probability of 3.64%.

The most likely scoreline for an Ajax win was 3-0 with a probability of 10.07%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 4-0 (9.32%) and 2-0 (8.17%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (3.24%), while for a PEC Zwolle win it was 1-2 (1.19%). The actual scoreline of 3-0 was predicted with a 10.1% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted a 3-0 win for Ajax in this match and our team at Sports Mole correctly predicted the win for Ajax.


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Game History

How you voted: Ajax vs PEC Zwolle

Ajax
90.0%
Draw
6.7%
PEC Zwolle
3.3%
30
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Ajax winger Antony pictured in September 2021
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Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1PSV EindhovenPSV16140256134342
2Ajax16113235161936
3FC UtrechtUtrecht1611323223936
4Feyenoord16105140182235
5FC Twente1694332201231
6AZ AlkmaarAZ1692530171329
7Go Ahead Eagles166462826222
8Fortuna SittardSittard166462023-322
9NAC BredaNAC Breda167181825-722
10Heerenveen166371728-1121
11Willem II165471718-119
12NECNijmegen165292220217
13PEC Zwolle164481525-1016
14Groningen164481426-1216
15Heracles163581833-1514
16Sparta RotterdamSparta162681424-1012
17RKC WaalwijkRKC Waalwijk1613121740-236
18Almere CityAlmere City161312737-306


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