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FC Twente logo
Eredivisie | Gameweek 2
Aug 22, 2021 at 11.15am UK
De Grolsch Veste
Ajax

FC Twente
1 - 1
Ajax

Propper (86')
Menig (10')
FT(HT: 0-0)
Haller (51')
Klaassen (17'), Haller (55')

Preview: FC Twente vs. Ajax - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Sunday's Eredivisie clash between FC Twente and Ajax, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Reigning champions Ajax visit the Grolsch Veste Stadium on Sunday for their clash against FC Twente in their first away outing of the new Eredivisie season.

Meanwhile, Twente will be looking to bounce back in front of their fans following an opening-day defeat on the road last time out.


Match preview

Ajax manager Erik Ten Hag pictured in December 2020© Reuters

Ajax kicked off their title defence in style with a 5-0 thrashing of newly-promoted NEC Nijmegen at the Johan Cruyff ArenA on Saturday.

Erik ten Hag's men blew their counterparts away in the first 20 minutes, scoring four times through Sebastien Haller, Noussair Mazraoui, Dusan Tadic and a Bart van Rooij own goal, before Tadic grabbed his second strike of the game six minutes before the interval.

De Godenzonen sit top of the pile as things stand and look set to mount a proper title defence as they go in search of a 36th league crown.

The Dutch giants now prepare for the trip to a venue which holds happy memories for them, as they have won each of their two games, scoring eight goals and conceding two.

Sunday's visitors hit five last time out, continuing their trend of being ruthless in front of goal, which is something we have come to expect.

Ron Jans, now in charge of FC Twente, pictured in September 2019© Reuters

After a far from impressive pre-season, Twente suffered a 2-1 defeat in their opening fixture versus Fortuna Sittard on Saturday.

Ron Jans's men were in control at half time courtesy of Ricky van Wolfswinkel's opener, but second-half goals from Mats Seuntjens and Toshio Lake turned the game on its head.

That was the Tukkers' first defeat in a season-opener since their promotion in 2019, ending a three-game unbeaten streak.

In their final home goal of last season, Saturday's hosts rallied from two goals down to claim a 3-2 win, but they cannot afford another slow start against a team of their next visitors' calibre.

FC Twente Eredivisie form:
  • L

FC Twente form (all competitions):
  • D
  • D
  • L
  • L
  • L

Ajax Eredivisie form:
  • W

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



Team News

Ajax's Nicolas Tagliafico in action in March 2021© Reuters

Twente's Vaclav Cerny and Julio Pleguezuelo are still sidelined with knee injuries, ruling them out of this weekend's game.

Congolese midfielder Jody Lukoki will have to wait a little longer to make his debut for Twente as he continues to nurse a knee problem.

Ajax are set to be without the services of Perr Schuurs and Mohammed Kudus due to ankle and shin injuries respectively.

Nicolas Tagliafico will serve the second of a three-game suspension following his red card in the final of the Dutch Super Cup earlier in the month.

FC Twente possible starting lineup:
Unnerstall; Smal, Oosterwolde, Propper, Troupee; Zerrouki, Bosch, Ilic; Menig, Van Wolfswinkel, Limnios

Ajax possible starting lineup:
Stekelenburg; Blind, Martinez, Timber, Mazraoui; Alvarez, Gravenberch, Klaassen; Tadic, Berghuis, Haller


SM words green background

We say: FC Twente 0-3 Ajax

Buoyed by last week's impressive win, the champions will aim to deliver another statement of intent this weekend against a struggling Twente side. We are tipping them to come away with all three points in an utterly convincing manner.



Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting under 3.5 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.Under 3.5:data



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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 65.28%. A draw had a probability of 19.7% and a win for FC Twente had a probability of 14.97%.

The most likely scoreline for an Ajax win was 0-2 with a probability of 10.95%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-1 (10.36%) and 1-2 (9.88%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (9.34%), while for a FC Twente win it was 1-0 (4.42%). The actual scoreline of 1-1 was predicted with a 9.3% likelihood.


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Game History

How you voted: FC Twente vs Ajax

FC Twente
5.7%
Draw
5.7%
Ajax
88.7%
53
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Ajax players celebrate scoring against FC Midtjylland on November 25, 2020
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Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1PSV EindhovenPSV1312014593636
2FC UtrechtUtrecht12101122121031
3Ajax1292127111629
4Feyenoord1384131131828
5FC Twente1374226121425
6AZ AlkmaarAZ1362525151020
7Go Ahead Eagles135351820-218
8Fortuna SittardSittard135261418-417
9NECNijmegen135172012816
10Willem II134451514116
11NAC BredaNAC Breda135171423-916
12Heerenveen134271326-1314
13Heracles133461425-1113
14PEC Zwolle133371424-1012
15Groningen133371224-1212
16Sparta RotterdamSparta132561320-711
17Almere CityAlmere City13139630-246
18RKC WaalwijkRKC Waalwijk1312101233-215


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