In their first Eredivisie meeting since 1978, Telstar welcome off-form Feyenoord to BUKO Stadion in Sunday’s gameweek 14 encounter.
Robin van Persie’s men have lost three league games in four to slip six points behind PSV Eindhoven, while their hosts are bottom of the table after 13 rounds, albeit just three points from leaving the relegation zone.
Match preview
Telstar may be 16 places below Feyenoord in the table, but the hosts arguably enter Sunday’s contest in better spirits, owing to their decent-to-good form.
Although they began the season by giving Ajax a scare in Amsterdam, only to lose 2-0, before stunning PSV 2-0 in Eindhoven, results after that triumph over the defending league champions brought Anthony Correia’s team back to earth.
Five defeats in six underlined the reality of top-flight football in Velsen-Zuid, where fans’ mood must have undeniably dipped after their team’s encouraging start to the season following a 47-year absence.
However, a 5-0 cup win against Lisse has seemingly turned things around for Telstar in the league, given their three-game unbeaten streak, albeit all draws.
With two of those results coming at their ground, the White Lions now seek another scalp by beating a Feyenoord side that have lost their way after a strong start to the season, aiming to give themselves a chance of leaving the bottom three.
© Imago / Orange Pictures
All that early-season ambition Feyenoord had has been deflated and then some, with the Stadium Club now unable even to buy a win.
Van Persie’s team did not lose a league game until late October’s 3-2 loss to PSV in Rotterdam, and they have not recovered from that blow.
A win against promoted FC Volendam followed, but it was perhaps expected, considering Volendam have only picked up two points from six away games since regaining promotion.
Defeating the league’s new boys was undeniably a false dawn, as four consecutive defeats in all competitions have followed — two in the Eredivisie — leaving the Rotterdam giants six points below PSV, having previously led the table.
Immediately striking is Feyenoord’s defensive fragility, a stark contrast to the side that kept six clean sheets in their first nine Eredivisie games; however, conceding 10 in their last four outings after letting in six to start the season magnifies where their problem lies.
While they cannot slip below second regardless of this weekend’s result — they are four points clear of AZ Alkmaar in third — Feyenoord risk falling further behind the runaway defending champions, who host Volendam in Eindhoven this weekend and may have opened up a nine-point lead before Van Persie’s team even take to the pitch later on Sunday.
Telstar Eredivisie form:
Telstar form (all competitions):
Feyenoord Eredivisie form:
Feyenoord form (all competitions):
Team News
© Imago / Pro Shots
Having suffered no injury issues in last weekend’s 1-1 draw with Utrecht, Correia has a healthy squad for Sunday’s match.
However, Mohamed Hamdaoui is missing through suspension after being sent off against Twente two rounds ago for violent conduct, minutes after his late introduction.
Soufiane Hetli and Jochem Ritmeester van de Kamp have scored three each, accounting for 40% of the promoted club’s 15 league goals, and both aim to be decisive on Sunday.
Their return pales in comparison to Ayase Ueda’s 13 or Sem Steijn’s six; however, Ueda has not scored in the top flight since the start of November, firing blanks in defeats to Go Ahead Eagles and NEC.
Still, the Japan international scored Feyenoord’s only goal in Thursday’s defeat by Celtic, ending a five-match drought for club and country, and he seeks to back up the continental strike by adding to his top-flight tally.
Gijs Smal and Leo Sauer were apparently injured when they were withdrawn just after the hour against the Scottish club, adding to the woes in Rotterdam.
Van Persie’s team were already dealing with a plethora of absences — Jordan Bos, Justin Bijlow, Gernot Trauner, Givairo Read, Malcolm Jeng, Thomas Beelen, In-Beom Hwang, Jakub Moder and Cyle Larin — and the above pair may now join a lengthy list if their issues were not precautionary.
Telstar possible starting lineup:
Koeman; Nwankwo, Bakker, Koswal; Lechkar, Rossen, Offerhaus, Hardeveld; Brouwer, Van de Kamp, Hetli
Feyenoord possible starting lineup:
Wellenreuther; Lotomba, Ahmedhodzic, Watanabe, Nieuwkoop; Valente, Timber; Moussa, Steijn, Diarra; Ueda
We say: Telstar 2-1 Feyenoord
Feyenoord have undoubtedly lost all momentum after a promising start that had fans dreaming of a 16th Eredivisie title and their second in four years.
The current goal is to stop their worrying four-match losing run across all competitions, with two defeats in the league.
Although it might be unpopular, Telstar have already proven they can challenge the big three this season, albeit away from home, and we dare to predict a narrow shock victory for them against the Rotterdam visitors.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
