AZ will host Groningen at the AFAS stadium this weekend, after the hosts picked up a 1-1 draw against Napoli in the Europa League on Thursday night.
Meanwhile, Groningen will be in high spirits after their 1-0 win against Willem II last Sunday, with both sides currently on the same points as they head into Sunday's fixture.
Match preview
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AZ remain unbeaten in the league, having picked up four wins and five draws so far, yet are currently 10 points behind leaders Ajax.
Their latest league result saw a narrow 2-1 win over Heracles, with Teun Koopmeiners and Myron Boadu getting on the scoresheet.
However, they were last in action on Thursday evening when Arne Slot's men managed a 1-1 draw against Napoli in matchday five of the Europa League.
This means that the Dutch outfit currently sit third in Group F, just two points below the Serie A side and behind Real Sociedad on goal difference, with their upcoming fixture against Rijeka proving pivotal.
Before that, however, Slot will need to focus his attention back on the league, with AZ picking up all four wins in their last four games in the Eredivisie as they hope to continue their excellent domestic form.
On the other hand, Groningen have started their 2020-21 season well, securing five wins in their opening 10 games.
Their latest win against Willem II featured a goal from Ahmed El Messaoudi, with the defensive midfielder netting his second of the term.
Groningen's away form this season has been pretty mediocre, with Danny Buijs's men recording two wins and two losses on the road.
The last time these two teams met was back in August last year during the early stages of the 2019-20 season, where the game ended in a 0-0 draw.
During their last 10 encounters, AZ have managed an impressive six wins against their opponents, compared to Groningen's solo victory.
AZ Eredivisie form: WWWWDD
AZ form (all competitions): DWDWWL
Groningen Eredivisie form: WDLWWD
Team News
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AZ have a few injury concerns heading into this game, with both Jonas Svensson and Jeremy Helmer set to miss Sunday's match.
Ron Vlaar and Jordy Clasie are also doubtful, and Slot is expected to rest a few players that featured in midweek.
Boadu could find his way back into the side, after the striker scored in their latest league game against Heracles.
As for Groningen, the visitors have only one injury heading into this fixture, with Arjen Robben set to miss the game.
Apart from the winger, Buijs is expected to have a lot of options to choose from for Sunday's match.
AZ possible starting lineup:
Bizot; Sugawara, Letschert, Martins Indi, Wijndal; Midtsjo, Koopmeiners; Stengs, De Wit, Karlsson; Boadu
Groningen possible starting lineup:
Padt; Dankerlui, Itakura, Van Hintum, Gudmundsson; El Messaoudi, Matusiwa, D Van Kaam; J Van Kaam, Larsen, Joosten
We say: AZ 1-1 Groningen
Currently there is not much to separate the two sides, with both Eredivisie clubs on equal points as they head into this weekend's fixture. Although AZ have the better head to head record, their injury troubles along with their heavy schedule means that Groningen should be able to grab a point from this game.
Top betting tip
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 AZ win with a probability of 58.26%. A draw had a probability of 21.9% and a win for Groningen had a probability of 19.85%.
The most likely scoreline for an AZ win was 1-0 with a probability of 9.95%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (9.94%) and 2-0 (9.61%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (10.29%), while for a Groningen win it was 0-1 (5.33%). The actual scoreline of 1-2 was predicted with a 5.3% likelihood.
