CAMBUUR VS VOLENDAM PREVIEW & PREDICTION
SC Cambuur and FC Volendam will have the opportunity on Friday evening to win a position that entitles them to participate in the playoffs at the end of the stage. In short, a six-point duel in Leeuwarden.
SC Cambuur:
SC Cambuur seems to have enough potential to force participation in the playoffs, but it is still questionable whether the team of coach René Hake indeed manages to qualify for the dessert of the season. The Frisians are currently just below the imaginary line and SC Cambuur will have to achieve good results to deal with some direct competitors. However, the lack of form is an issue at the moment and Hake will have to pull out all the stops to turn the tide. The last eight games were only a victory and that shows that at Cambuur it is currently too rough. From Almere City was narrowly won with 2-1 at home, but from the three games that followed, the Frisians got only two points. However, it should be noted that Cambuur came into action against Jong PSV, NEC Nijmegen and Fortuna Sittard, three clubs from the top six of the ranking.
With the last fact in mind, the results of the last weeks are not that bad. In Eindhoven, the men of Hake played 1-1 against Young PSV and a week later that same score was on the board after the game against NEC. Last week, visiting Fortuna Sittard, despite a dream start, went wrong. Matthew Steenvoorden and Ricardo Kip had already scored 0-2 after nine minutes of play, but in the remainder of the game, Cambuur did not manage to impress anymore. Fortuna Sittard fought back into the game and two penalties by Lisandro Semedo finally put the 3-2 final score on the board.
Hake has to deal with a big injury list and this week the suspension of Steenvoorden is added again. The defender collected his twelfth yellow card of the season last week, which means he has to sit down again on Friday. Each subsequent yellow print now results in a suspension. Based on the last training, Kenny Teijsse will make his debut for the Leeuwarders. The defender came over from San Francisco Deltas during the winter break.
FC Volendam:
If FC Volendam still manages to qualify for the playoffs, then that is a performance that the club can rightly be proud of. Het Andere Oranje started the season dramatically and even dropped to the last place. The board of the North Hollanders then remained calm and kept confidence in trainer Misha Salden and during the season the team scrambled again. After the winter break FC Volendam performed a lot better and that’s why the places giving the right to participate in the playoffs came into view again. The Volendammers are ranked 14th, but the gap with the top ten is only two points. A single victory could therefore be enough to increase some positions and that could lead to extra confidence. The formation of Salden has been very volatile in recent weeks. Victories are regularly booked, but the lack of form in away games could eventually be fatal. The last four eliminations yielded zero points and during that series the defense won no less than twelve goals.
Time for progress, but the meeting with Cambuur takes place in Leeuwarden and FC Volendam will have to perform better to prevent a new loss. Last week, however, was won. In the home match against FC Den Bosch, the Salden men finally came to the end, but the hosts had to go deep. The showdown seemed to be headed for a bloodless 0-0, but by the end of the game it was Rodney Antwi who managed to work the winning goal against the ropes. His goal in the 81st minute made for a crucial three point.
Salden will have to do this without playmaker Joey Veerman this week. The young playmaker got a touch on his lower leg last week and the showdown with Cambuur now comes too early for the midfielder. Salden has already indicated in his weekly talk with the press that Alex Plat will replace him. Furthermore, Ties Evers returns from a suspension and Mohamed Betti will move to the bank again.
PREDICTION: Both teams to score / YES @ 1.58
