Preview: FC Utrecht vs NEC - prediction, team news, lineups

NEC Nijmegen will travel to Stadion Galgenwaard to take on FC Utrecht in their Gameweek 11 Eredivisie fixture on Sunday.

The visitors sit seventh in the standings, having accrued 15 points, while the home side are two places and a couple of points below in ninth position.

Match preview

When Utrecht ended their six-game winless run with a 3–1 victory over Volendam in gameweek nine, fans would have thought that they had turned the corner.

However, they were dealt a blow of reality with a 2–0 loss to Freiburg in the Europa League and a 4–1 annihilation at the hands of AZ Alkmaar in the Eredivisie, the heaviest defeat suffered by Ron Jans's team this season.

Central to their problems this term have been their defensive inadequacies, a situation which is highlighted by their failure to keep a clean sheet in nine consecutive matches across all competitions.

At the other end of the pitch, they are faring better, with 19 goals scored in the league, and they have managed to find the back of the net in their last four league outings.

Unbeaten in their last two matches in front of their fans, the Cathedral Citizens will be looking to bank on the support of their fans and home advantage to extend their recent decent showings on their stomping ground.

The last time this fixture was decided in March, Nijmegen took all three points courtesy of a Vito van Crooij effort from 12 yards, meaning the home side will be desperate to avoid two consecutive losses to the visitors at home.

While the hosts remain unbeaten in their last two league encounters at home, NEC Nijmegen have seen a recent improvement in their form on the road, with two draws against Go Ahead Eagles (1–1) and PEC Zwolle (2–2).

However, since the 4–1 victory over Heracles in their first away encounter of this season, Dick Schreuder's men are without a win in matches outside familiar territory.

Although they scraped past Rijnsburgse Boys 3–2 in the first round of the KNVB Cup on Thursday, their first win in four matches, that is hardly a measure of their readiness for Sunday's fixture.

And for all their inconsistencies, they are one of the top attacking teams in the Dutch top flight, with a goal haul of 27, a record which is the joint-second best with the leaders Feyenoord, after PSV with 30 strikes.

FC Utrecht Eredivisie form:

FC Utrecht form (all competitions):

NEC Eredivisie form:

NEC form (all competitions):

Team News

FC Utrecht Doctors will subject Mike van der Hoorn to checks to be sure of his readiness for Sunday's encounter.

Meanwhile, Victor Jensen, who has scored three goals in the same number of matches, is struggling with a muscle problem and is effectively ruled out for this weekend's fixture.

Similarly, Niklas Vesterlund has been stricken with a knee injury since October 10, while Yoann is yet to return from a leg injury he sustained in August.

For NEC, Jetro Willems and Bram Nuytinck are both ruled out due to knee injuries, meaning they will continue their spell on the sidelines.

Koki Ogawa and Bryan Linssen have scored seven goals between them, and they are expected to lead the line for the visitors on Sunday.

In addition, Linssen has provided four assists, and he will be looking to improve his numbers when they take to the pitch this weekend.

FC Utrecht possible starting lineup:

Barkas; Horemans, Eerdhuijzen, El Karouani, Didden; Iqbal, Engwanda, Jonathans, De Wit, Blake; Min

NEC possible starting lineup:

Crettaz, Kaplan, Sandler, Dasa; Nejasmic, Ouaissa, Sano, Chery, Onal; Ogawa, Linssen

We say: FC Utrecht 1-1 NEC

Utrecht and NEC tend to be brittle at the back, and that suggests that both sides could be breached.

Thus, we expect the two sides to find the back of the net in this encounter, but considering that the hosts are unbeaten in two matches at home and the fact that they will be out to avenge their loss the last time the fixture took place, we expect a final score of 1–1.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.