Preview: SBV Excelsior vs FC Twente - prediction, team news, lineups

In what has been a dreadful start to the season, SBV Excelsior will go out in search of their first victory of the new Eredivisie campaign when they take on FC Twente at Van Donge & De Roo Stadion on Saturday.

The hosts, who are second from bottom, are yet to earn their first point of the new season, while Twente, who are unbeaten against the home side in almost eight years, will be looking to record their second win of the season.

Match preview

Fans of Excelsior would have hoped for a better result in their last outing, given that the Kralingers gave Feyenoord a scare in their gameweek two encounter.

However, their hopes were dashed in their subsequent encounter against Utrecht, when they suffered a 4-1 defeat at Stadion Galgenwaard.

While the Rotterdam-based side were able to match their opponents in terms of possession, they faced a total of 16 shots, the same number recorded in each of their opening two fixtures, highlighting their lack of compactness at the back.

So far, the hosts have conceded 11 goals across three league matches, a record which is the worst in the Eredivisie.

Conversely, the home side have only managed two goals since their return to the Dutch top flight, and ahead of this fixture, Ruben den Uil will be aware of the need for improvements at both ends of the pitch.

Their two most recent meetings against Sunday’s opponents did not go well, though, with the hosts suffering two losses, conceding seven and managing only two goals in those matches.

Elsewhere, Twente have endured an undesirable start to the season, losing each of their two opening Eredivisie fixtures against Zwolle (1-0) and PSV Eindhoven (2-0).

Last weekend, however, the visitors ended their winless start to the season after claiming a 2-1 victory over Heerenveen away from home.

That triumph saw the Pride of the East move up five places to 10th position in the standings, although they were third in the table at the same stage last term.

Going forward, the Reds have amassed a total of 13 shots on target, but they have been able to convert only two of those.

Hence, it will be interesting to see if Joseph Oosting’s men will be able to improve on their conversion rate beginning with the fixture on Saturday.

SBV Excelsior Eredivisie form:

FC Twente Eredivisie form:

Team News

Although the outcome of their last encounter was not desirable, Den Uil may decide to field the same starting XI as in their previous game.

Calvin Raatsie has been in goal in his team’s last two league fixtures, and he could keep his place between the sticks for the home side.

At the back, Casper Widell and Stan Henderikx have been the most preferred partnership in the heart of the defence, and they are likely to keep their places in front of Raatsie.

Meanwhile, Lennard Hartjes (knee), Lewis Schouten (muscle) and Mathijs Tielemans (undisclosed) are all ruled out of this contest as they are still recuperating from their injuries.

Although Ricky van Wolfswinkel is yet to find the back of the net, having led from the front in his side’s last three encounters, he remains the undisputed choice to lead the charge for goals on Saturday.

Robin Propper and Stav Lemkin formed the centre-back pairing last time out, and given their impressive performance, they are likely to anchor defensive duties again.

However, the away side will have to cope with the absence of Mathias Kjolo, who is currently struggling with a knee injury.

SBV Excelsior possible starting lineup:

Raatsie; Zagre, Widell, Martens, Henderikx; Naujoks, Carlen; Fernandes, Yagoian; De Regt; Van Duinen

FC Twente possible starting lineup:

Unnerstall; Van Roij, Bruns, Propper, M. Rots; Zerrouki, Van den Belt; D. Rots, Hlynsson, Booth; Van Wolfswinkel

We say: SBV Excelsior 0-1 FC Twente

This match is a contest of two sides that have yet to hit the ground running in terms of goal return, as both sides have only recorded two goals each in their last three respective matches.

Hence, we expect a low-scoring affair, with the visiting side expected to edge this contest 1-0, thus extending the winless streak of the hosts

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