📏 Form Guide

Sparta Rotterdam

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Sparta Rotterdam won’t want a repeat of their last result here following the 1-0 Eredivisie defeat in their last game at the hands of FC Groningen.

In that match, Sparta Rotterdam managed 57% possession and 11 shots at goal with 3 on target. For their opponents, FC Groningen got 8 shots at goal with 5 on target. Romano Postema (31') scored for FC Groningen.

Matches with Sparta Rotterdam have tended to be lively affairs recently with a lot of goalmouth action being a real hallmark. Over their past six games alone, the sum total of 22 goals have been scored for both teams combined (at an average of 3.67 goals per game) with 10 of those being chalked up by Sparta Rotterdam. That kind of pattern might not be sustained here, of course.

Looking at the pre-match facts, Sparta Rotterdam:

• haven't won against AZ in their previous 2 league games.
• are without a win at home for the past 6 matches in the league. Things will have to change soon.

AZ

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After a loss in their previous game against Willem II in Eredivisie competition, AZ and their travelling fans will hope for a better result here.

In that match, AZ managed 69% possession and 30 attempts at goal with 3 of them on target. The scorer for AZ was Mexx Meerdink (63'). At the other end, Willem II had 7 attempts on goal with 3 on target. Kyan Vaesen (37') and Cisse Sandra (41') scored for Willem II.

The stats don’t lie, and AZ have been scored against in 6 of their last 6 matches, conceding 11 goals overall. At the back, AZ seem to have a bit of a soft underbelly.

Taking a look at their past results, AZ:

• have not been beaten by Sparta Rotterdam in games played away from home for the previous 4 matches in the league. A very decent away record against them.
• have not won away from home in their last 2 league matches.

👥 Head to head

A review of their prior head-to-head meetings going back to 05/12/2021 shows us that Sparta Rotterdam have won 1 of these and AZ 3, with the tally of drawn results being 2.

In all, 16 goals were produced between them during those clashes, with 6 of them from Kasteelheren and 10 created by AZ. The average goals per game has been 2.67.

The last league meeting featuring these sides was Eredivisie match day 36 on 02/03/2024 which ended up with the score at Sparta Rotterdam 1-1 AZ.

On that occasion, Sparta Rotterdam had 45% possession and 14 attempts at goal with 6 on target. Their only player on the scoresheet was Arno Verschueren (74').

On the other side, AZ got 15 attempts at goal with 4 of them on target. Yukinari Sugawara (25') was the scorer.

The match was refereed by Jochem Kamphuis.

📰 Team News: Sparta Rotterdam

We think that Kasteelheren look set to employ a 4-2-3-1 formation for the game, handing starts to Nick Olij, Boyd Reith, Marvin Young, Mike Eerdhuijzen, Said Bakari, Joshua Kitolano, Pelle Clement, Kayky, Arno Verschueren, Camiel Neghli and Tobias Lauritsen.

📰 Team News: AZ

AZ manager Maarten Martens has multiple availability issues to deal with. Jordy Clasie (Back injury), Bruno Martins Indi (Muscle injury), Kristijan Belic (unknown injury), Ibrahim Sadiq (unknown injury), Sem Westerveld (Meniscus injury), Zico Buurmeester (unknown injury), Lequincio Zeefuik (unknown injury), Ruben van Bommel (Toe injury) and Lewis Schouten (unknown injury) will miss out on this game.

From our viewpoint, AZ seem most likely to make use of a 4-2-3-1 lineup, settling for Jeroen Zoet, Seiya Maikuma, Alexandre Penetra, Maxim Dekker, Mees de Wit, Dave Kwakman, Peer Koopmeiners, Mayckel Lahdo, Sven Mijnans, Jayden Addai and Troy Parrott.

🔮 Prediction

Our assessment here is that Sparta Rotterdam will need to push hard to hit the back of the net against this AZ outfit who we think will likely gain the upper hand.

With that in mind, we reckon that it will be a 0-1 advantage for AZ when the referee blows for full-time.

Looking forward to watching this one unfold.

Our expert partners are tipping over 1.5 goals for this match. Check out their VIP predictions here.

Renata Leite, 13:06 24/11/2024