Sparta Rotterdam host RKC Waalwijk on Saturday, as they look to record a second consecutive win and move back up the Eredivisie table after a poor run of form.
Meanwhile, the visitors have recently moved away from the relegation zone, thanks to an upturn in form in the past few weeks.
Match preview
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Sparta Rotterdam got back to winning ways in league action last time out, defeating VVV Venlo 1-0 away from home as a Kristopher da Graca own goal decided the game.
That result ended an eight-game winless run in the league for the Sparta Stadion Het Kasteel outfit.
Before that, Henk Fraser's side came so close to a victory away at basement side FC Emmen, as Laros Duarte's goal was cancelled out by 96th-minute penalty for the hosts, which Michael de Leeuw converted to snatch a point.
Despite the disappointment of a late equaliser, that draw did put an end to a run of three consecutive league defeats for De Kasteelheren, including a surprise loss to strugglers Willem II.
Fraser's men now sit in 12th spot in the Eredivisie table, but they remain just six points behind ninth-placed Heerenveen, meaning a winning run could see them quickly move back into the top half.
However, that will be no easy task, as they welcome an RKC Waalwijk side who have had an upturn in form in recent weeks.
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Despite that, they did suffer a narrow defeat to FC Utrecht in their last league game, falling to a 2-1 home loss.
The game looked set to finish 1-1 after Richard van der Venne's equaliser for the hosts, before Utrecht were awarded a penalty in the seventh minute of added time, which Sander van de Streek scored to take all three points for the visitors.
Before that, Fred Grim's side went on a five-game unbeaten run in the Eredivisie, drawing three games and securing crucial victories over FC Emmen and Heracles.
As a result, they now sit 14th in the top flight, five points above 16th spot and seven points ahead of the automatic relegation zone.
That is a large progression on last season, when RKC were at the foot of the table when the league was put to an end due to the COVID-19 outbreak, and Grim will be keen to put that behind them as they look to avoid the drop this campaign.
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Team News
Sparta Rotterdam will remain without full-back Mica Pinto, who has missed their last two games with a hamstring injury.
He is joined on the sidelines by goalkeeper Tim Coremans, who is yet to feature this season due to a long-term knee injury.
Their line will be led by Lennart Thy, who has notched up an impressive tally of nine Eredivisie goals so far this season, despite failing to find the net in his last nine league appearances.
RKC Waalwijk remain without wingers James Efmorfidis and Morad El Haddouti, with the pair both out with injuries.
Richard van der Venne will be in search of another goal on Saturday, having found the net twice in his last three games from midfield.
However, Grim's side has struggled for a real goalscorer this season, with Finn Stokkers topping their league scoring charts with five goals.
Sparta Rotterdam possible starting lineup:
Okoye; Abels, Vriends, Beugelsdijk, Meijers; Harroui, Duarte, Aussar, Burger; Engels, Thy
RKC Waalwijk possible starting lineup:
Lamprou; Bakari, Meulensteen, Touba, Quasten; Anita, Tahiri; Daneels, Van Der Venne, John; Stokkers
We say: Sparta Rotterdam 1-1 RKC Waalwijk
With both sides coming into this game with some quiet confidence, we see them sharing the points at the Sparta Stadion Het Kasteel.
While the away side have enjoyed a better run of form in recent weeks, the quality of Sparta Rotterdam should help them to a result if they can continue to work better as a unit.
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 Sparta Rotterdam win with a probability of 48.45%. A win for RKC Waalwijk had a probability of 26.43% and a draw had a probability of 25.1%.
The most likely scoreline for a Sparta Rotterdam win was 1-0 with a probability of 10.91%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (9.41%) and 2-0 (8.59%). The likeliest RKC Waalwijk win was 0-1 (7.59%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (11.94%). The actual scoreline of 2-0 was predicted with an 8.6% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Sparta Rotterdam would win this match.
