Separated by nine places and as many points on the log, Feyenoord and RKC Waalwijk get round nine of the 2021-22 Eredivisie season underway with their meeting at De Kuip on Saturday.
The hosts are looking to bounce back from a defeat in their last outing, while the visitors still await a first victory since the opening weekend.
Match preview
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Feyenoord were denied a fifth consecutive win in all competitions courtesy of a 2-1 defeat versus Vitesse when the sides faced off at the GelreDome on October 3.
Lois Openda broke the deadlock in the sixth minute before Arne Slot's men hit back through Guus Til just shy of the half-hour mark, only for Openda to grab his second of the game early in the second half.
De Stadionclub have dropped down to fifth place in the Eredivisie table, four points adrift of current leaders Ajax with a game in hand.
Next up for them is the challenge of taking on an opposing side who have lost on each of their last four visits by a combined score of 11 goals to two.
With a Conference League group-stage clash against German outfit Union Berlin to follow five days later, Saturday's hosts will be keen on picking up all three points in order to set the tone for their European commitment in midweek.
Waalwijk put an end to a two-game losing streak with a 1-1 draw versus newly-promoted Go Ahead Eagles at the Mandemakers Stadion two Sundays ago.
After falling behind to an Inigo Cordoba first-half strike, Joseph Oosting's men levelled matters on the hour mark thanks to a coolly taken penalty by Alexander Buttner.
Heading into this weekend's contest in Rotterdam, RKC currently occupy 14th place on the log but are above the drop zone only on goal difference.
Having picked up just three of the last 21 points available, Saturday's visitors now seek to turn their season around to avoid a repeat of last season's relegation scrap.
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Team News
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Guus Til has scored four times in his last two home appearances for Feyenoord and the midfielder is one to keep an eye on this weekend.
Twenty-eight-year-old Mark Diemers is out with a back injury which he picked up three months ago and still awaits his first outing of the new season.
Marcos Senesi is a doubt for this weekend's contest after coming off in the first half of the home side's last involvement with an injury.
Portuguese goalkeeper Joel Pereira will play no part for the visitors due to a hernia problem, while David Min misses out through a knee injury.
Jens Odgaard has been directly involved in half of the visitors' six goals away from home this term and will be looking to deliver the goods again.
Feyenoord possible starting lineup:
Bijlow; Malacia, Senesi, Trauner, Pedersen; Kokcu, Til, Toornstra; Sinisterra, Jahanbakhsh, Linssen
RKC Waalwijk possible starting lineup:
Vaessen; Touba, Meulensteen, Gaari, Buttner; Anita, Azhil, Bel Hassani; Odgaard, Bakari, Kramer
We say: Feyenoord 3-0 RKC Waalwijk
Feyenoord are the only team in the division with a perfect home record to date and are strong favourites to come out on top in this one. We are backing them to cruise to all three points in grand style come the end of the 90 minutes.
Top 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 Feyenoord win with a probability of 76.68%. A draw had a probability of 14.6% and a win for RKC Waalwijk had a probability of 8.71%.
The most likely scoreline for a Feyenoord win was 2-0 with a probability of 11.62%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 3-0 (10.09%) and 2-1 (8.94%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (6.87%), while for a RKC Waalwijk win it was 1-2 (2.64%). The actual scoreline of 2-2 was predicted with a 3.4% likelihood.
