With both teams looking to record consecutive Eredivisie victories, Go Ahead Eagles play host to FC Utrecht at De Adelaarshorst in round 25 of the 2021-22 season on Saturday.
Utrecht saw off the threat of Heerenveen last time out, while Go Ahead Eagles produced what is arguably the biggest upset of the season by defeating Ajax in their last league outing.
Match preview
Go Ahead Eagles stunned Ajax on Sunday when they claimed an impressive 2-1 victory over the defending champions to throw a spanner in the works.
Kees van Wonderen's men took a commanding two-goal lead at half time through Inigo Cordoba and Philippe Rommens before putting on a solid defensive display in the second half to claim all three points despite Steven Berghuis's consolation strike.
The Pride of the IJsel Kowet have climbed up to 12th place in the Eredivisie table, opening up a seven-point gap over the drop zone with 10 matches left to play.
Next up is a clash against an opposing outfit who have enjoyed the better of this fixture in recent times, losing just one of the last seven encounters.
Having seen their KNVB-Beker journey come to an end in midweek against PSV Eindhoven, Saturday's hosts will be looking to put their cup disappointment behind them with another huge step towards safety this weekend.
FC Utrecht picked up their first victory in three outings by beating an out-of-sorts Heerenveen side 2-1 at the Abe Lenstra Stadion on Sunday.
Bart Ramselaar and Mike Van der Hoorn put Rene Hake's men in the box seat with second-half goals 10 minutes apart, rendering Sydney van Hooijdonk's late effort inconsequential.
The Domstedelingen continue to hold on to the last European playoff spot as they seek to secure a return to continental football for the first time in 11 years.
With just 14 of their 39 points this term coming away from home, Saturday's visitors will need to turn things around on the road if they are to stand any chance of bettering last season's sixth-placed finish.
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Team News
Go Ahead Eagles' Joris Kramer was sent off in his side's cup exit on Wednesday, but the defender is eligible to take part this weekend nonetheless.
Inigo Cordoba has found the back of the net in three matches on the bounce, and the Spaniard is one to keep an eye on for this weekend's hosts.
Twenty-one-year-old Sam Crowther remains out of action due to a heart problem which has seen him fail to feature for the best part of the last 18 months.
Utrecht's defensive duo of Christopher Mamengi and Reda Akmum continue to battle with knee injuries, ruling them out of Saturday's contest.
Naoki Maeda is a major doubt for the away side due to a muscle injury, but Arthur Zagre could make his return to action after missing the last four games through injury.
Go Ahead Eagles possible starting lineup:
Noppert; Martina, Nauber, Kramer, Idzes; Rommens, Brouwers, Oratmangoen, Deijl; Lidberg, Cordoba
FC Utrecht possible starting lineup:
De Keijzer; Warmerdam, Van der Maarel, Van der Hoorn, Ter Avest; Timber, Maher, Van de Streek; Ramselaar, Veerman, Sylla
We say: Go Ahead Eagles 1-2 FC Utrecht
Buoyed by their huge victory over Ajax last time out, Go Ahead Eagles will approach Saturday's game with the wind in their sails and rightly so. That said, Utrecht still boast the more well-rounded squad, and we are tipping them to claim all three points.
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 FC Utrecht win with a probability of 58.87%. A draw had a probability of 21.5% and a win for Go Ahead Eagles had a probability of 19.62%.
The most likely scoreline for a FC Utrecht win was 1-2 with a probability of 9.95%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-1 (9.59%) and 0-2 (9.48%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (10.06%), while for a Go Ahead Eagles win it was 2-1 (5.28%). The actual scoreline of 1-1 was predicted with a 10.1% likelihood.
