Aiming to build on success in the KNVB Cup on Thursday night, NEC will welcome relegation-threatened FC Volendam to Goffertstadion in Nijmegen on Sunday afternoon in the Eredivisie.
The hosts ended a run of three matches without a victory by conquering second-tier opposition in the cup, while Volendam were in league action at Ajax, losing quite convincingly in Amsterdam.
Match preview
NEC return to Eredivisie action for the first time since last weekend's worrying events in the final stages of their trip to face AZ Alkmaar at AFAS Stadion, where former Netherlands international striker Bas Dost collapsed to the floor and had to be resuscitated by members of the emergency services.
The ex-Wolfsburg attacker had put Nijmegen into a first-half lead and then set up Magnus Mattsson to double the visitors' advantage, and after AZ scored in the second period through Evangelos Pavlidis to pile the pressure on NEC, the concerning scenes surrounding Dost forced the contest to be abandoned.
After a very difficult couple of days for everyone associated with the club, Rogier Meijer's men were back in action during the first round of the KNVB Cup against second-tier outfit Roda JC on Thursday night, when makeshift striker Roberto Gonzalez bagged a brace to help NEC to a 5-3 victory.
Having won just one of their last six Eredivisie standings, Nijmegen have slipped down to 12th in the top-flight standings after collecting nine points from their opening nine matches, with 16th-placed Vitesse only one point behind - although the Arnhem-based club have played a game more.
An early relegation six-pointer at the Johan Cruijff Arena is certainly not what Volendam fans were expecting at the beginning of this term, but on Thursday night that is exactly what they were provided with, and the visitors were unable to record back-to-back wins for the first time this season.
John van 't Schip out-of-form side took the lead in the second period courtesy of former Tottenham Hotspur man Steven Bergwijn - netting his fifth goal in only seven league appearances - before last season's Championship Golden Boot winner Chuba Akpom doubled his team's advantage off the bench.
After defeat last time out, Volendam are lying in 17th place in the Eredivisie standings having earned seven points from their first 10 games, although a very congested middle section of the table means that Sunday's visitors are only four points behind PEC Zwolle in ninth.
The Other Oranje have fared woefully on their travels so far in the 2023-24 league campaign, failing to pick up any points during their opening five outings away from Kras Stadion, losing to Go Ahead Eagles, Fortuna Sittard, PSV Eindhoven, RKC Waalwijk and most recently Ajax.
Team News
NEC are set to make a couple of changes to the side that eased off second-tier opposition in the cup on Thursday, with first-choice goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen to replace Robin Roefs in between the sticks.
Striker Dost is understandably taking a break from football for the foreseeable future following last weekend's events, meaning the likes of Koki Ogawa will shoulder more of the goalscoring burden.
Brayann Pereira is still a doubt for Sunday hosts, with the 20-year-old Frenchman having not featured in the league since the 4-0 loss at PSV back on September 16.
Volendam are expected to be without the services of right-back Brian Plat this weekend after the 23-year-old missed the majority of his side's October fixtures due to a knock.
NEC possible starting lineup:
Roefs; Van Rooij, Ross, Nuytinck, Verdonk; Proper, Schone, Gonzalez, Mattson, Hansen; Ogawa
FC Volendam possible starting lineup:
Backhaus; Payne, Benamar, Flint, Cox; Mirani, Twigt; Ould-Chikh, De Haan, Johnson; Muhren
We say: NEC 1-0 FC Volendam
NEC will miss the presence of marksman Dost in the coming months, but the hosts will be determined to put on a good show with the 34-year-old watching on TV.
Volendam have been poor on the road so far this season, and we cannot envisage this changing at Goffertstadion on Sunday afternoon in the Eredivisie.
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