Tag Archives: Heracles

Week 32 Eredivisie Weekend Wrap-up: Ajax virtually crowned

April 14, 2014 Will Burns Leave a comment

League leaders Ajax defeated ADO Den Haag 3-2 to move within one point of clinching the Eredivisie title. Feyenoord are the only side that can mathematically catch the Amsterdammers, however it looks high unlikely as the Rotterdam side will have to hope the defending champions lose their last two games and that they can make up a nine-goal deficit on the way.

Saturday 12th April 2014

Jon Dahl Tomasson’s Roda JC will finish in the bottom three after Saturday’s 3-0 defeat at FC Twente left them eight points adrift of safety with two games to go. The rock-bottom Roda will either be automatically relegated or have to compete for this Eredivisie survival in the relegation play-off. Young Norwegian striker Torgeir Børven scored twice in the opening 26 minutes to virtually cement all three points to Michel Jansen’s side, as former Arsenal youth player Kyle Ebecilio made sure in the second-half.

Seven goals were exchanged in a topsy-turvy contest as SC Cambuur defeated Vitesse 4-3 to ruin Peter Bosz’s men’s chances of an automatic Europa League spot. Full-back Kelvin Leerdam struck first for Vitesse before scoring past his own goalkeeper following Martijn Barto’s equaliser. Although, it was level at half-time as Chelsea loanee Christian Atsu restored parity. Chelsea team-mate Bertrand Traoré put the visitors back in front 11 minutes into the second half but Bartholomew Ogbeche and Barto scored within five minutes of one another to send the Cambuurstadion into raptures.

Go Ahead Eagles need one more point to mathematically secure their Eredivisie status as lost 2-0 to Heerenveen at De Adelaarshorst. Impressive young left-back Joost van Aken nodded Marco van Basten’s side in front in only his second full start for the club. On 76 minutes, Alfred Finnbogason scored Heerenveen’s second after some good work from Bilal Basacikoglu on the right-wing. The goal was the Icelander’s 27th of the Eredivisie campaign.

Sunday 13th April 2014

Frank de Boer’s Ajax defeated Henk Fraser’s ADO Den Haag in a five goal thriller, however, Feyenoord’s 2-0 victory over PSV ensured that Koeman’s men remain six points behind in second place with two rounds of games remaining. If Ajax can clinch at least a point away to Heracles Almelo in a fortnight, they will clinch their fourth successive Eredivisie championship.

Danish midfielder Christian Poulsen gave the league leaders the lead on 35 minutes, although within a minute ADO drew level via Stefano Denswil scoring in his own net to send the sides in at half-time all square.

Second-half goals from Davy Klaassen and Thulani Serero put Ajax 3-1 up with central defender Tom Beugelsdijk scoring a last-minute goal to cut the deficit for ADO. However, it was too late to make an impact when referee Richard Liesveld blew for full-time just moments later

Along with their slim title hopes, Feyenoord maintain their second place with the consolation prize of Champions League qualification well within their grasps. Goals from defensive duo Joris Mathijsen and Daryl Janmaat gave them the win over PSV Eindhoven, who have now suffered three consecutive defeats since Philip Cocu was called out of action after a back operation.

NEC Nijmegen are set to compete relegation play-off in a month’s time although they held AZ Alkmaar to an impressive 1-1 draw that leaves them five points from safety. Dick Advocaat’s side took a second half lead through Nemanja Gudelj’s penalty on 55 minutes but NEC midfielder Kevin Conboy netted three minutes from time to secure a valuable point.

Fellow relegation contenders RKC Waalwijk played out a 1-1 draw with PEC Zwolle and now are three points off safety. RKC striker Daniel De Ridder scored just before the hour mark, but his goal was cancelled out by PEC’s Mateusz Klich just nine minutes later.

FC Utrecht will play Eredivisie football next season after they eased their relegation worries thanks to first-half goals from Jacob Mulenga and Juan Agudelo that earned Jan Wouters’ side a 2-1 victory over Heracles. The visitors saw Mikhail Rosheuvel hit back on 64 minutes and defender Bart Schenkeveld was dismissed with five minutes remaining to halt any ideas of a draw for the Almelo side.

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BETTING TIPS, EREDIVISIE, EREDIVISIE PREVIEW

EREDIVISIE WEEK 32 – Sunday’s Preview & Betting Tips

April 12, 2014 Will Burns Leave a comment

Will Burns returns with his selections for Sunday’s games and like all his tips, you will not see a ‘best bet’ under evens – good luck!

Sunday 13th April

AZ ALKMAAR vs. NEC NIJMEGEN (13:30 BST)

NEC Nijmegen are in dire need of points to survive but they face AZ Alkmaar that have won all but one game at home in 2014.

AZ are undefeated at the AFAS Stadion in the Eredivisie this year and I feel AZ will be too strong for Nijmegen who look to cement their Europa League playoff place this weekend. NEC are well capable of goals and have scored in every game this season apart from four and that’s in all competitions.

Dick Advocaat’s men have been winning at both half time and full time in five of their last six home matches in the league but after a gruelling game in Benfica this past Thursday, they may show tiredness. The fight for NEC to stay out of that bottom spot that Roda holds may just push them to give AZ a real test and an even game. Bet Victor have the draw priced at 3/1 and I see that as a great price to start the day.

BEST BET: Draw (3/1 – Bet Victor)

RKC WAALWIJK vs. PEC ZWOLLE (13:30 BST)

Ron Jans is without a host of players through injury when his PEC Zwolle side travel to Waalwijk on Sunday afternoon. Goalkeeper Kevin Begois, defenders Trent Sainsbury and Leroy Labylle, midfielder Kamohelo Mokotjo and forward Densi Mahmudov are all out.

Zwolle will have one eye on next weekend’s KNVB Beker final in Rotterdam against Ajax and this may be a blessing to Erwin Koeman and RKC Waalwijk who are desperate for points to try and remove themselves out of relegation trouble.

An RKC win will take them one point to safety breathing down NAC Breda’s neck in 15th. Bet Victor value the Waalwijk win at 21/20 and I see that being our best chance of profit in this match.

BEST BET: RKC to win (21/20 – Bet Victor)

FC UTRECHT vs. HERACLES (13:30 BST)

With just one point separating them Heracles in 13th travel to 14th placed Utrecht. With just three games left in the league season, both sides know that there is a possibility of being sucked into the relegation battle.

Jan Wouters’ Utrecht have only won twice in the 14 games played in 2014 so far and I can see them failing again, however, sometimes Heracles can let themselves down. Two weeks ago, they startled Feyenoord taking the lead but two defensive lapses saw them lose 2-1.

For our best bet, Heracles Draw No Bet is valued at 11/8 by Bet Victor so if the match is drawn, your money is returned.

BEST BET: Heracles Draw No Bet (11/8 – Bet Victor)

AJAX vs. ADO DEN HAAG (15:30 BST)

Ajax could claim their fourth Eredivisie championship in a row this Sunday if Feyenoord drop points and they can defeat an ADO Den Haag side, that are undefeated since head coach Henk Fraser took over in February.

The great form has earned Fraser a contract until the summer of 2016 managing ADO to four wins and five draws. Fraser faces a tough task against soon-to-be champions Ajax, however, Frank de Boer is missing some key players. Daley Blind and Ricardo van Rhijn miss out due to suspension so Danish veteran Christian Poulsen will sit in the midfield, as young full-back Ruben Ligeon will take Van Rhijn’s place in defence.

Ajax should be too strong for ADO but with the Amsterdammers valued at 1/5 with some betting outlets, I see no value in that market. I look to goals and a trend I have noticed is Under 2.5 Goals with these two sides. For ADO, in their last four away league matches, there have been under 2.5 goals scored and four of Ajax last six matches have all ended with just two goals scored. Once again, Bet Victor offers the best odds with 85/40 being values for Under 2.5 Goals.

BEST BET: Under 2.5 Goals (85/40 – Bet Victor)

PSV EINDHOVEN vs. FEYENOORD (15:30 BST)

PSV in fifth host second placed Feyenoord in the game of the weekend in a game that the PSV must win if they hope for Champions League football next season.

However, Ronald Koeman’s Feyenoord are looking unstoppable at the moment, winning their last five games in a row and are now sit four points ahead of Twente in third. With just three games to go, they know it is their spot to lose.

Italian striker Graziano Pellè made his comeback from suspension last weekend, scoring twice in a win over RKC and he will be a real threat to PSV’s back four. PSV captain Georginio Wijnaldum made his comeback from a back injury last Saturday in the 3-0 thumping off Heerenveen, he however, could start from the off against his former club.

Both sides have goals in them but I can see Feyenoord edging this one with the greater firepower, especially Pellè. Feyenoord to win and both teams to score is valued at 18/5 by Bet Victor and this could be a big winner to finish the weekend.

BEST BET: Feyenoord to win with Both Teams to Score (18/5 – Bet Victor)

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EREDIVISIE, EREDIVISIE REPORT

Week 31 Eredivisie Weekend Wrap-up: Ajax leave champagne on ice

April 6, 2014 Will Burns Leave a comment

League leaders Ajax are yet to clinch the Eredivisie title as they were held 1-1 by Vitesse at the Gelredome on Sunday. Elsewhere, Feyenoord maintained second place and Twente in third as PSV were defeated 3-0 by Heerenveen on Saturday night.

Saturday 5th April 2014

PSV, minus head coach Philip Cocu, fell to heavy 3-0 defeat on Saturday evening to Marco van Basten’s Heerenveen. Ernest Faber, deputising for Cocu, has now lead the Eindhoven side to two defeats in two and their aspirations of Champions League football next season have been dashed. Balil Basacikoglu netted on the half-hour mark but second half goals from Rajiv van la Parra and Alfred Finnbogason has now stuck PSV down into fifth place but are five points ahead of Heerenveen who sit a place behind them.

Twente stay in third after winning 2-0 away to NAC Breda thanks to goals from Felipe Gutiérrez and Dušan Tadić. Dropping down to fifteenth in the standings, Breda are now only four points away from the drop zone.

Go Ahead Eagles steered themselves out of relegation trouble with a 2-1 away win at Heracles. Mikhail Rosheuvel, a threat throughout and put the hosts into a first-half lead but the Eagles turned the game on its head after the interval. Midfielders Deniz Türüç and Erik Falkenburg scored the goals to move Go Ahead up to 11th place even though Jarchinio Antonia was dismissed two minutes before time.

NEC Nijmegen stay second bottom and six points from safety after being held 1-1 by manager-less SC Cambuur in a game that saw three sending-offs in four minutes. Geoffrey Castillion gave NEC the lead but Mart Dijkstra equalised just after half-time. NEC captain was sent off six minutes from time and the sides were evened up when Marcel Ritzmaier was given his second yellow minutes later. However, the relegation strugglers were reduced to nine with just two minutes remaining when Rens van Eijden received his second booking.

Sunday 6th April 2014

Frank de Boer’s Ajax came back from a goal down to draw 1-1 at Vitesse, however, being six points clear of Feyenoord in second, remained on track to win their fourth consecutive Eredivisie championship. The Amsterdammers fell mid-way through the first-half when Chelsea loanee Bertrand Traoré netted. Icelandic international forward Kolbeinn Sigthórsson equalized two minutes after the break to earn his side the point.

Sunday also saw the return of Italian striker Graziano Pelle to the Feyenoord side after a four-game suspension and he notched both goals in his side’s 2-0 with over RKC Waalwijk. Ronald Koeman’s men travel to PSV next weekend but look most likely to claim the second Champions League spot.

ADO Den Haag are still undefeated under Henk Fraser after smashing ten-men FC Utrecht by four goals to one. Ronald Alberg and Mike van Duinen sent Utrecht in at half-time two goals down, and Mitchell Schet and Michiel Kramer added to the tally in the second half. Utrecht saw striker Steve de Ridder dismissed after just 24 minutes for two bookings and Jens Toornstra grabbed a last minute consolation goal.

In the final game of the weekend, basement boys Roda JC held AZ Alkmaar to a 2-2 draw that yet another red card. Berry Powel put Jon Dahl Tomasson’s men ahead but AZ midfielder Markus Henriksen equalised before half-time. American striker Aron Johansson notched before the hour mark to give the visitors the lead but Guus Hupperts snatched the leveller twenty minutes from time. With just below ten minutes remaining, Guy Ramos saw red for his second bookable offence. Roda look doomed and are eight points away from safety, results next weekend could see them confirmed to the relegation play off places.

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BETTING TIPS, EREDIVISIE, EREDIVISIE PREVIEW

EREDIVISIE WEEK 31 – Saturday’s Preview & Betting Tips

April 5, 2014 Will Burns Leave a comment

Will Burns returns with his betting tips for Saturday evening’s games and like all his selections, you will not see a ‘best bet’ under evens. If you place all four of these results in an accumulator – you will get odds of 115/1!!! Good luck if you are having a punt!

Saturday 5th April

HEERENVEEN vs. PSV (17:45 BST)

Ernest Faber, covering for Philip Cocu, will be unhappy with his start last weekend falling 3-2 at home to Groningen while Heerenveen should have claimed all three points against Vitesse but were held to a 2-2 draw.

One thing this game will promise will be goals. For PSV, central defender Jeffrey Bruma is the only absentee for the trip to Heerenveen and is expected to be replaced by either Mathias Jørgensen or Jorrit Hendrix in the line-up. Club captain, Georginio Wijnaldum, after making a return last weekend, will be hoping to make his first start since the 14th September last year in a 2-2 draw with Twente. He may replace Stijn Schaars who is doubtful for this game with a knee injury.

Hakim Ziyech will be missing for Heerenveen and this could hamper the amount of chances created for Bilal Basacikoglu and Alfred Finnbogason. Rajiv van la Parra will return and young left-back Joost van Aken will be pushing for a start at left-back in place of the injured Mitchell Dijks after an impressive substitute appearance last weekend.

This could very well end up in a draw but PSV will press for all three knowing that they need points to try and catch Feyenoord in second for Champions League qualification. There have been Over 2.5 goals scored in 13 of Heerenveen’s last 15 home games in league but to get some value we will try and go one better. Over 3.5 Goals is valued at 23/20 at Bet Victor and I see that as our Best Bet in this one.

BEST BET: Over 3.5 Goals (23/20 – Bet Victor)

NAC BREDA vs. FC TWENTE (18:45 BST)

Twente head to Breda to face NAC without suspended duo Rasmus Bengtsson and Luc Castaignos and this may hinder their chances of victory come Saturday evening.

Third-place Twente have only won twice in the last nine games and after falling out of the title race, they know they need to pick up points before they lose the chance to become runner-up and qualify for Champions League football. Their form on the road has majorly contributed to their downfall recently after failing to win in their last five away games, however, their opponents, NAC are also on a bad run and have not won in seven games.

NAC have had some impressive results at home this season including recent draws against the top two, Feyenoord and Ajax. I predicted Twente’s draw on Wednesday at a massive 5/1 and I am going for the draw again at the same price with Bet365.

BEST BET: Draw (5/1 – Bet365)

NEC NIJMEGEN vs. SC CAMBUUR (18:45 BST)

Cambuur have experienced turmoil over the last seven days which is possibly set to ruin a decent first season back in the Eredivisie.

Head coach Dwight Lodeweges announced on Tuesday that he was to replace Marco van Basten at bitter rivals Heerenveen in the summer and the Cambuur faithful protested the following morning. So much so that Lodeweges resigned with immediate effect and the Leeuwarden side lost their midweek game at Utrecht.

Due to all the upheaval at Cambuur, I can see NEC Nijmegen, sitting second bottom and seven points from safety, winning and pulling away from the definite relegation spot currently occupied by Roda. Nijmegen are desperate for points and English striker Michael Higdon is on form banging in five goals in five consecutive games. I except this run to continue and NEC to get the much needed three points.

NEC to win is being offered at 5/4 with Bet365 and that is the best price for this one.

BEST BET: NEC Nijmegen win (5/4 – Bet365)

HERACLES vs. GO AHEAD EAGLES (19:45 BST)

Although Go Ahead Eagles head to Almelo with a poor away record (lost 7 of their last 8 away games in the league), they have a fantastic record against Heracles.

The Eagles of Deventer have been winning at both half time and full time in their last three games at the Polman Stadion in all competitions. After taking a 5-0 thumping from Feyenoord last weekend in Rotterdam, Fooke Booy’s side bounced back with a 2-1 at home to NAC Breda.

Heracles are in similar hitty-missy form after winning back to back games against basement sides Roda and NEC, Jan de Jonge’s men lost at home to Feyenoord but in all fairness put in a strong display and even took the lead against the Rotterdam side.

When looking at the result for this game, I have to opt for the draw. Both sides are not out of the woods as of yet in results to relegation trouble but Heracles (6 points) and Eagles (4 points) do have a little breathing space with four games to go. I can see this being a cautious affair with few chances and few goals. For the scores to be level at full-time, Bet Victor are offering 3/1.

BEST BET: Draw (3/1 – Bet Victor)

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EREDIVISIE, EREDIVISIE REPORT

Midweek Eredivisie Report: Ajax & Feyenoord pull away

April 3, 2014 Will Burns Leave a comment

On a night which saw four red cards in the Eredivisie, Ajax take a further step to clinching their fourth championship in a row as Feyenoord pull away from the chasing pack in second.

Wednesday 2nd April

GO AHEAD EAGLES 2-1 NAC BREDA

Go Ahead Eagles pulled four points clear from the drop zone with a vital 2-1 home win over NAC Breda.

Adelaarshorst was sent into raptures on 26 minutes when Jarchinio Antonia displayed his skills with a wonderful solo goal which ended up with the winger delightfully chipping the ball over NAC goalkeeper Jelle ten Rouwelaar to put the hosts in front.

Jordy Buijs got the equaliser with a smart free-kick from the edge of the box on 38 minutes. A low grass-cutting effort that sneaked under the wall and left Go Ahead’s Danish keeper Stephan Andersen totally bemused.

However, the hosts grabbed the late winner through an own goal from Henrico Drost after the NAC defender stuck a leg out trying to stop a Sjoerd Overgoor effort but diverted the ball past Ten Rouwelaar to give Go Ahead the win.

TEAMS

GO AHEAD: Andersen, Amevor (Haps 86), Vriends, Van den Linden, Schenk, Overgoor, Falkenburg, Rijsdijk (Lambooij 88), Antonia, Kolder, Houtkoop (Godee 66).

SUBS NOT USED: Ten Den, Cummins, Azevedo, Pot.

GOALS: Antonia 26, Drost 84.

BOOKINGS: Amevor 85.

NAC: Ten Rouwelaar, De Roover, Drost (Hadouir 88), Kwakman, Swerts, Buijs, Matic, Bodor, Hooi, Poepon (Perica 78), Verbeek (Sarpong 46).

SUBS NOT USED: Babos, Van der Weg, Suk, Seuntjens.

GOALS: Buijs 38.

BOOKINGS: Swerts 21, Buijs 33, Ten Rouwelaar 85.

HERACLES 1-2 FEYENOORD

Feyenoord defeated Heracles Almelo 2-1 to make the gap between second and third placed FC Twente to four points which makes Ronald Koeman’s side favourites to clinch the Champions League qualification spot.

The hosts took control early in the game as the tricky Iliass Bel Hassani scored the opening goal after 14 minutes. The 21-year-old, cut inside from the left-wing and avoided the challenges of Jordy Clasie and Daryl Janmaat to drive a low left-footed shot to beat Erwin Mulder in goal.

Feyenoord were 2-1 up before half-time with young striker Mitchell te Verde heading home a Clasie corner on the half-hour mark. Four minutes before the break, Ronald Koeman’s side took the lead and what turned out to be the winning goal by Tony Vilhena.

The Rotterdam side look to nail the Champions League place down but face tough tests against PSV and AZ Alkmaar before the end of the season.

TEAMS

HERACLES: Pasveer, Koenders, Schenkeveld, Veldmate, Davidson, Bruns (Cziommer 62), Rienstra, Bel Hassani, Tannane (Rosheuvel 25), Uth (Amoah 46), Linssen.

SUBS NOT USED: Telgenkamp, Belterman, Streutker, Quansah.

GOALS: Bel Hassani 14.

BOOKINGS: Cziommer 72, Amoah 84.

SENT OFF: Cziommer 87.

FEYENOORD: Mulder, Janmaat, De Vrij, Martins Indi (Van Beek 90+1), Kongolo, Clasie, Immers, Vilhena (Vormer 78), Schaken, Te Vrede, Boëtius (Verhoek 57).

SUBS NOT USED: Lamprou, Armenteros, Bakkal, Nelom.

GOALS: Te Vrede 30, Vilhena 41.

BOOKINGS: Verhoek 90+4.

RKC WAALWIJK 0-2 AJAX

Ajax could win the Eredivisie title at the weekend against Vitesse if Feyenoord fail to beat Ajax’ opponents tonight RKC Waalwijk. Frank de Boer’s men controlled RKC to take a 2-0 victory back to Amsterdam.

Ajax were not messing about in Waalwijk and went a goal up after just 14 minutes. Central defender Joël Veltman rising above everyone at the back post to head home from a Lasse Schöne corner.

It was 2-0 before the half-hour with Davy Klaassen finishing the move that Kolbeinn Sigthórsson orchestrated.

RKC remain up to their knees in relegation trouble four points adrift from safety with just four games left to play.

TEAMS

RKC: Van Dijk, Lamey (Apau 26), Van Hoevelen, Prince, Amieux, Sno, Jungschläger, Duits, Castelen (Anderson 73), Beauguel, De Ridder (Joachim 57).

SUBS NOT USED: Šeda, Van Mosselveld, Braber, Schet.

GOALS: None.

BOOKINGS: None.

AJAX: Cillessen, Van Rhijn, Veltman, Denswil, Blind, Klaassen (Serero 82), Poulsen, Duarte, De Sa (Kishna68), Sigthórsson, Schöne.

SUBS NOT USED: Vermeer, Van der Hoorn, Boilesen, Riedewald, Bojan.

GOALS: Veltman 14, Klaassen 28.

BOOKINGS: None.

FC TWENTE 1-1 ADO DEN HAAG

Henk Fraser managed ADO to another fantastic result a 1-1 draw away to FC Twente, who ended the game with just nine men. However, ADO have now gone eight games unbeaten for the first time since 1972.

The hosts took the lead in the ninth minute through Felipe Gutiérrez when he coolly finished a move created by Quincy Promes.

The three points looked to be slipping away out of Twente’s grasp just after the hour mark when Rasmus Bengtsson was dismissed for a professional foul when he bundled over ADO striker Michiel Kramer, who was racing through on goal. The resulting free-kick on the edge of the area by Danny Holla was curled perfectly low around the wall but was tipped onto the post by Twente keeper Nick Marsman.

Luc Castaignos thought he had sealed the win for his side on 75 minutes but had his effort correctly ruled out for offside.

With just nine minutes to go, Michiel Kramer nodded home the all important equaliser from a wonderful cross from right-back Dion Malone.

Twente saw red again before full-time with Castaignos given his marching orders for a harsh challenge on Malone.

The hopes of Twente’s Champions League qualification take a blow but the point lifts the Enschede side above Vitesse, whose links with Premier League giants Chelsea were revealed to be under investigation by the KNVB on Wednesday.

TEAMS

TWENTE: Marsman, Martina, Bengtsson, Bjelland, Koppers, Ebecilio (Breukers 92), Brama (Roseler 85), Gutiérrez, Promes (Mokhtar 81), Castaignos, Tadić.

SUBS NOT USED: Stevens, Schilder, Corona, Borven.

GOALS: Gutiérrez 9.

BOOKINGS: None.

SENT OFF: Bengtsson 64, Castaignos 88.

ADO: Coutinho, Zuiverloon (Van Haaren 59), Wormgoor, Bakker, Meijers, Malone, Holla, Alberg, Schet (Wildschut 81), Kramer, Cabral (Gouriye 78).

SUBS NOT USED: Zwinkles, Gehrt, Buwalda, Kanon.

GOALS: Kramer 82.

BOOKINGS: None.

FC UTRECHT 1-0 SC CAMBUUR

Jacob Mulenga, making his first start since November last year, scored the only goal of the game as FC Utrecht eased their relegation worries at home to mid-table SC Cambuur.

Jan Wouters will be a relieved man as he witnessed his side clinch their first win in five games to steer clear of relegation worries.

Jacob Mulenga poked home the winner on 56 minutes after Steve de Ridder had fed the Zambian striker through on goal. The visitor’s hopes of a comeback were dented midway through the second half when Lucas Bijker was shown red for a rash challenge on Adam Sarota.

Cambuur’s great season could end on a sour note after Tuesday saw manager Dwight Lodeweges announce he would be leaving for Heerenveen at the end of season. The Leeuwarden’s sides fans protested on Wednesday morning which saw Lodeweges resigned later that day. They sit only three points off the Europa League playoff places but with caretaker manager Henk de Jong leading them out for the last four games, this may be out of their reach.

TEAMS

UTRECHT: Ruiter, Van der Maarel, Delpierre, Heerings, Bulthuis, Sarota, Mårtensson, Toornstra, Oar, Mulenga, De Ridder.

SUBS NOT USED: Verhoeven, Van der Gun, Markiet, Diemers, Agudelo, Dorda, Quesada.

GOALS: None.

BOOKINGS: None.

CAMBUUR: Nienhuis, Droste, Leeuwin, Van der Laan, Bijker, Bakker, El Makrini, Ritzmaier, Lukoki, Barto, Manu.

SUBS NOT USED: Zeinstra, Periera, Van Moorsel, Hemmen, Dijkstra, Ogbeche, Schepers.

GOALS: None.

BOOKINGS: None.

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EREDIVISIE, EREDIVISIE REPORT

Week 30 Eredivisie Report: PSV slip as Heerenveen hold Vitesse

March 29, 2014 Will Burns Leave a comment

Saturday 29th March 2014

VITESSE 2-2 HEERENVEEN

Vitesse missed the chance to jump in to second place as Peter Bosz’s men and Marco van Basten’s Heerenveen shared the points in a hard-fought 2-2 draw in a great game in the GelreDome.

Van Basten gave 18-year-old winger Daley Sinkgraven his first start in the same week the players signed new contract with the club replacing Rajiv Van la Parra who was left out of the matchday squad for disciplinary reasons.

The first real chance of the game came when Zakaria Labyad forced a save from Kristoffer Nordfeldt on 15 minutes, and Valeri Qazaishvili lashed the rebound towards goal but his effort was blasted just wide of the post.

On the half hour, Mike Havenaar notched his tenth of the season after Ronald Achenteh found him free at the back post, and the Japanese striker arrived to tap home.

Heerenveen nearly had the perfect response a minute later when Bilal Basacikoglu surged forward down the left and swung a ball into the area for Hakim Ziyech but Piet Velthuizen pulled off a great stop to preserve his side’s lead. Opposition goalkeeper Nordfeldt was called into action moments later at the other end when Chelsea’s on-loan full-back Patrick van Aanholt smashed a low left foot drive but the big Swede got down to protect his net.

The visitors got the levelling goal through the Icelandic hitman Alfred Finnbogason with a superb goal. Joey van den Berg played the ball into the striker’s feet on the edge of the area, the Eredivisie top scorer strongly held off the challenge of Jan-Arie Van der Heijden, kept his composure and fire into the goal.

After the half-time team talks, Bertrand Traoré replaced Havenaar after the Vitesse goalscorer had fallen awkwardly on his ankle midway through in the first half.

The visitors grabbed the lead just before the hour mark after some great work from young substitute Joost van Aken, after being one the pitch for less than two minutes. The left-back surged down the wing and beat Achenteh to cross in for Bilal Basacikoglu to rise above Van Aanholt to head past Velthuizen.

Another substitute brought the hosts back level, Chelsea midfielder Bertrand Traoré with a great finish in the 67th minute after being put through on goal by fellow Chelsea team-mate Christian Atsu.

Both sides pressed for the winning goal but both keepers saved their team. At first, Finnbogason looked certain to score ten minute from time but Velthuizen got in front of the striker’s close range effort. Meanwhile, with just a minute remaining, Nordfeldt had to tip over a Traore free-kick.

The draw helped neither team although Vitesse move up into second at the expense of PSV as Heerenveen stay in sixth.

TEAMS

VITESSE: Velthuizen, Achenteh (Vejinovic 82), Mori, Van der Heijden, Van Aanholt, Pröpper, Qazaishvili, Labyad, Atsu (Djurdjevic 73), Havenaar (Traoré 46), Piazón.

SUBS NOT USED: Room, Bosz, Metalsi.

GOALS: Havenaar 31, Traoré 67.

BOOKINGS: Qazaishvili 61, Mori 84.

HEERENVEEN: Nordfeldt, Marzo, Kum, Kruiswijk, Raitala (Van Aken 56), Van Anholt, Van den Berg, Sinkgraven, Ziyech (Slagveer 90+1), Finnbogason, Basacikoglu.

SUBS NOT USED: Vandenbussche, Otigba, De Kamps, Fazli.

GOALS: Finnbogason 39, Basacikoglu 58.

BOOKINGS: Raitala 44, Van Anholt 72, Ziyech 86, Van Aken 88.

NEC 1-2 HERACLES

The already relegation threatened NEC Nijmegen suffered a last minute defeat to ten man Heracles to stay four points adrift of safety but have played more games than all the other clubs in the relegation battle.

The hosts opened the scoring on 20 minutes as Englishman Michael Higdon notched goal number fourteen of the Eredivisie campaign. Higdon skipped past Heracles keeper Remko Pasveer to finish into the vacant goal.

The equaliser did not arrive until the 80th minute with Australian Jason Davidson making the NEC Nijmegen pay for not clearing a cross. A few minutes later, the visitors were down to ten men as Mike te Wierek was shown his second yellow card by referee Kevin Blom for a bad tackle on Søren Rieks.

With the game heading to a draw, Heracles substitutes Matthew Amoah and Iliass Ben Hassini combining to steal the points. Ben Hassini whipped in a ball to the back post and Amoah was on hand to nod the ball past Dennis Gentenaar in goal.

Heracles have climbed up to tenth in the league standings with the positive results, however for NEC, it’s looking highly likely that the Nijmegen side will be at least participating in the relegation playoffs come the end of April.

TEAMS

NEC: Gentenaar, Vermijl, Nielsen, Conboy, Leiwakabessy, Jahanbakhsh (Castillion 88), Rieks, Štefánik, Koolwijk (Mulder 53), Jantscher (Hemlein 82), Higdon.

SUBS NOT USED: Johnsson, Stutter, Disveld.

GOALS: Higdon 20.

BOOKINGS: Rieks 90.

HERACLES: Pasveer, Te Wierik, Rienstra, Schenkeveld, Davidson, Tannane, Quansah, Bruns (Veldmate 74), Rosheuvel (Bel Hassani 62), Uth (Amoah 58), Linssen.

SUBS NOT USED: Telgenkamp, Koenders, Cziommer, Belterman.

GOALS: Davidson 79, Amoah 90+5.

BOOKINGS: Linssen 62, Te Wierik 74, Quansah 85.

SENT OFF: Te Wierek 83.

PSV 2-3 FC GRONINGEN

After an eight-game winning streak, PSV Eindhoven were defeated for only second time this season at the Philips Stadion, 3-2 by FC Groningen.

With Philip Cocu sidelined for the rest of the season after an operation midweek to remove a benign tumour from his back, his assistant Ernest Faber led the PSV team out for the first time. The team were boosted with Georginio Wijnaldum’s return as he had been out of action since September with a back injury.

PSV exploded out of the blocks and made Groningen pay for a defensive error within the first two minutes. After Maikel Kieftenbeld had gave the ball away, goalkeeper Marco Bizot rushed out to punch the ball away from Jürgen Locadia’s path, the quick thinking masked-man Memphis Depay acrobatically chipped the ball towards goal from outside of the box to make it 1-0.

Two quick fire goals not only got Groningen back in the game but saw them take the lead.After a good run from Filip Kostic on 18 minutes, the Serbian rolled the back to Richairo Zivkovic inside the six-yard box for the youngster to tap home his eighth goal of the season.

In the 20th minute, Filip Kostic robbed PSV defender Karim Rekik of the ball in his own area and fired past Jeroen Zoet to make it 2-1 with two goals in two minutes. The Philips Stadion and the PSV players were shell shocked.

The scores were level at the half-time break as PSV were handed a lifeline on 37 minutes. Bryan Ruiz earned his side a penalty and Jürgen Locadia sent the spot-kick low to Bizot’s right and into the bottom corner to make it 2-2.

However, PSV did not go onto to win the game even though they boasted much the possession and only 64 minutes, Tjaronn Chery hit a free-kick that missed everyone and nestled into Zoet’s goal to give his side the three points.

As Edwin van de Looi and Groningen celebrated, PSV sulked as this was a bitter blow to their chances of Champions League qualification for next season.

TEAMS

PSV: Zoet, Arias, Willems, Bruma, Rekik, Schaars (Georginio Wijnaldum 46), Park, Hiljemark (Maher 87), Ruiz (Narsingh 77), Depay, Locadia.

SUBS NOT USED: Tyton, Brenet, Zanka Jørgensen, Bakkali.

GOALS: Depay 3, Locadia 37.

BOOKINGS: Bruma 21, Rekik 46.

GRONINGEN: Bizot, Hateboer, Botteghin, Kappelhof, Burnet (Giliano Wijnaldum 30), Lindgren, Kieftenbeld, Chery, Van der Velden, Zivkovic, Kostic (Kirm 90+2).

SUBS NOT USED: Van der Lei, Adorjan, Van Nieff, Clintje, Zeefuik.

GOALS: Zivkovic 18, Kostic 20, Chery 64.

BOOKINGS: Burnet 10, Botteghin 36, Wijnaldum 66.

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BETTING TIPS, EREDIVISIE, EREDIVISIE PREVIEW

EREDIVISIE WEEK 30 – Saturday’s Preview & Betting Tips

March 28, 2014 Will Burns Leave a comment

After nailing the draw at 13/5 in last nights game, Will Burns returns with his betting tips for the three Saturday evening’s game and like all his selections, you will not see a ‘best bet’ under evens. If you have a punt on these three in a treble, it will pay a massive 50/1.

Saturday 29th March

VITESSE vs. HEERENVEEN (17:45 GMT)

Vitesse face one of their bogey teams in Heerenveen in Saturday’s first game. The Friesland club are undefeated in 13 of their last 14 away matches against the Arnhem side in all competitions.

However, this is a game that Vitesse needs to collect all three points to stay in race for second place and after last week’s defeat to FC Groningen, Peter Bosz will have to quickly pick his men up. Meanwhile, Heerenveen threw away a two-goal advantage to draw at home to NEC last weekend so Van Basten will look for a better performance in Arnhem.

The hosts have problems is defence with Kelvin Leerdam and Guram Kashia suspended and Frank van der Struijk struggling with a hamstring pull, Bosz will have to ring out the changes in his back four. The likes of Hakim Ziyech and the Eredivisie’s top scorer Alfred Finnbogason will look to take advantage.

Heerenveen have Marten de Roon suspended but other than that should be full strength and well equipped to full off a shock in Arnhem. Betfair Sportsbook are offering 9/2 for a away win and that is our best bet.

BEST BET: Heerenveen to win (9/2 – Betfair)

NEC NIJMEGEN vs. HERACLES (18:45 GMT)

Relegation troubled NEC Nijmegen’s season went from bad to worse on Wednesday after doing so well to reach the semi-finals of the KNVB Beker only to be knocked out 2-1 by PEC Zwolle courtesy of an error from goalkeeper Dennis Gentenaar.

NEC have been unlucky with their stoppers as of late with Gentenaar only making a return to the side a few weeks ago after Karl-Johan Johnsson was dropped due to similar performances. Needing points desperately Anton Janssen’s side host 12th place Heracles who themselves are not out of the woods when it comes to relegation to the Eerste Divisie. The visitors are on 33 points, just six points ahead of the bottom three and could easily get dragged into those bottom three spots.

NEC have failed to win nine of their last ten matches in Eredivisie, however, they have just been defeated once in their last seven at home is heartening. I feel both sides cancelling each other out here and providing a result that neither team would like. Our best price in this one is at Bet Victor who offer 11/4 for the game to end level.

BEST BET: Draw (11/4 – Bet Victor)

PSV vs. FC GRONINGEN (19:45 GMT)

PSV are on a eight-game winning streak but they head into game number nine without head coach Philip Cocu, as the former midfielder had surgery to remove a benign tumour on his back on Thursday.

There is some good news for the Eindhoven side however, as club captain Georginio Wijnaldum should make the bench after a six-month absence with a back injury. Even without their manager on the sidelines, you cannot look past the in-form PSV to take all three points.

Groningen are without Michael de Leeuw and Tom Hiariej with young prodigy Richairo Zivkovic also doubtful for the trip to Eindhoven with an ankle injury that will be assessed before kick-off. Although Santiago Arias is doubtful for the home side, Joshua Brenet can fill in with Jetro Willems returning, the PSV defence should be so strong that Groningen will have great trouble in breaching. And with Memphis Depay and Jürgen Locadia on fire at the moment, I see PSV winning and keeping a clean sheet. Best bet is PSV winning to nil valued at 29/20 at Bet Victor.

BEST BET: PSV to win to nil (29/20 – Bet Victor)

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EREDIVISIE, EREDIVISIE REPORT

Week 28 Eredivisie Report: PSV up to third

March 15, 2014 Will Burns Leave a comment

PSV extended their winning run to seven games in a row with a great 2-1 win away to Vitesse to lift the Eindhoven side up to third in the league, leaving Philip Cocu thinking… what could his side achieved this season without the mid-season blip he suffered before Christmas.

Saturday 15th March 2014

VITESSE 1-2 PSV

In a ferocious high-octane game where nine yellow cards were handed out by referee Kevin Blom, PSV defeated Vitesse 2-1 in the loud and raucous GelreDome.

PSV needed no inspiration for this fixture after suffering an embarrassing and heavy 6-2 defeat in the reserve fixture at the Phillips Stadion back in December, the Boeren headed into Arnhem looking for revenge. Cocu men’s exploded out of the blocks and got off to a great start after just six minutes.

Vitesse’s number one Piet Velthuizen received a back pass from Rochdi Achenteh and the experienced goalkeeper stuttered with his kicked clearance as Jürgen Locadia closed down. Velthuizen miss-kicked the boot up field and the ball fell perfectly for Locadia to tap the ball home. Not the start Vitesse manager Peter Bosz would have wanted.

PSV were relentless as they sensed Vitesse’s nervousness and on a six game winning streak and brimming with confidence, Cocu’s men pressed for a quick fire second. The usually composed Guram Kashia lost the ball to Locadia on the edge of the box but Memphis Depay unusually failed to get a shot off and let the Vitesse defenders recover and block any efforts on goal.

The hosts began to keep the PSV attacks at bay and calmed themselves down before former PSV midfielder Zakaria Labyad equalised on 19 minutes with a tremendous effort from outside the area. After Kashia laid the January signing on the edge of the box, the PSV defenders were too late in closing Labyad down and he curled his right footed shot past Jeroen Zoet.

Just before the half-hour, the visitors regained the lead in controversial fashion. After a great run down the left wing from Jetro Willems, the left-back was fouled by Jan-Arie van der Heijden in the area and Kevin Blom pointed to the spot. Replays showed that Willems had skipped Van der Heijden’s challenged but the defender trailing arm looked to brush the PSV’s man legs and Willems went down a tad easy.

Memphis Depay stepped up to the take the spot-kick and blasted his shot straight down the middle only to see his effort saved by the legs of Velthuizen. The rebound flicked up high to the back post where Ji-Sung Park headed the ball back across goal so Depay could nod home to make it 2-1.

Velthuizen and his defence protested as they thought that Depay was offside when Park’s header came back to the winger but video showed that the linesman may have made the right decision even though it was a close one. The GelreDome exploded in anger with spurred the home side on and they instantly pressed for an equalising goal.

After the break, the game continued as the first half ended with Vitesse on the all out attack. The defence of Santiago Arias, Jeffrey Bruma, Karim Rekik and Willems held strong and protected their goalkeeper Zoet well, blocking effort after effort, frustrating the hosts even further.

On the hour mark, both sides looked tired as the tempo died down and Depay was replaced by Luciano Narsingh as the young winger has caught an elbow from Renato Ibarra and was groggy as a black eye started to create on Depay’s face.

The game petered out as Vitesse pressed but hardly bothered Zoet in the PSV goal, apart from the odd cross that the Oranje goalkeeper assertively caught every time. They had their chances but Bruma and Rekik stopped any shot before it made to their stopper in goal.

In the dying embers of the game, substitute Lucas Piazón had a glorious opportunity to snatch a point for his side but fluffed his chance as Philip Cocu celebrated his seventh win in a row on the touchline.

PSV temporarily move into third with just two points off Vitesse in second but Twente or/and Feyenoord could leapfrog them with wins in their fixtures tomorrow.

TEAMS

VITESSE: Velthuizen, Van der Struijk (Piazón 69), Kashia, Van der Heijden, Achenteh, Vejinovic, Pröpper, Labyad (Djurdjevic 85), Atsu, Havenaar, Ibarra (Qazaishvili 69).

SUBS NOT USED: Room, Mori, Traore, Van Aanholt.

GOALS: Labyad 18.

BOOKINGS: Ibarra 14, Van der Heijden 28, Havenaar 29, Labyad 33, Achenteh 57.

PSV: Zoet, Arias, Rekik, Bruma, Willems, Schaars, Hiljemark, Park (Maher 79), Ruiz, Depay (Narsingh 69), Locadia (Hendrix 90+4).

SUBS NOT USED: Tyton, Zanka Jørgensen, Brenet, Matavz.

GOALS: Locadia 7, Depay 29.

BOOKINGS: Park 32, Bruma 42, Schaars 56, Willems 74.

HERACLES 2-1 RODA JC

The in-form Bryan Linssen has now scored nine goals in his last nine games as he notched a brace to lead Heracles to a 2-1 win over the relegation troubled Roda JC.

Roda headed into Almelo with their first win in seven games last weekend against NEC and they started well with Guus Hupperts scoring his eighth goal of the season after quarter of an hour gone. The 21-year-old had the goal put on a plate from after Mitchell Donald combined with Berry Powel before setting up Hupperts to score.

Just before the interval, Heracles settle down their restless crowd with the equalising goal. After some great work down the left by Mark Uth, the ball was played into Bryan Linssen on the penalty spot to slot the ball past Filip Kurto to send the fans in at half-time happy.

With 12 minutes left remaining in the game, Linssen popped up with the winner after some slack tired Roda defending. Collecting Jason Davidson’s pass, the Heracles’ top scorer netted with a lovely calm low finish on the turn inside the area, giving Kurto no chance of stopping.

Jon Dahl Tomasson’s Roda sit down in the drop zone in 17th, five points adrift of safety with other relegation candidates Utrecht and Go Ahead Eagles still to play tomorrow. The win lifted Heracles up into 12th place, six points ahead of the bottom three.

TEAMS

HERACLES: Pasveer, Schenkeveld, Streutker (Quansah 45), Davidson, Te Wierik, Rienstra, Tannane, Cziommer (Bruns 45), Rosheuvel (Bel Hassani 84), Linssen, Uth.

SUBS NOT USED: Telgenkamp, Amoah, Van Dijk, Belterman.

GOALS: Linssen 43 & 78.

BOOKINGS: Tannane 54.

RODA: Kurto, Ramos, Van Peppen, Letschert (Monteyne 87), Luijckx, Höcher (Fledderus 68), Donald (Demouge 80), Kali, Sutchuin, Hupperts, Powel.

SUBS NOT USED: Dijkhuizen, Prus, Paulissen, Bonevacia.

GOALS: Hupperts 14.

BOOKINGS: Donald 54.

ADO DEN HAAG 2-1 FC GRONINGEN

ADO has got that ‘Fraser’ feeling as caretaker manager Henk Fraser has now lead his side to three wins and three draws in his six game in charge and has now surely lead the club out of relegation trouble with today’s 2-1 home win over ten-man FC Groningen.

After a goal-less and dull first-half, it took an Eric Botteghin sending off to liven up the game just past the hour mark. The Brazilian was penalised for pushing Ronald Alberg down while through on goal on the counter. It was a terrible error by referee Reinold Wiedemeijer as he awarded a penalty for the foul but the contact was made well outside the box. Ronald Alberg sent goalkeeper Marco Bizot the wrong way to open the scoring.

On 77 minutes, Groningen’s 17-year-old striker Richairo Zivkovic restored parity with a great strike after Filip Kostic had put the youngster through on goal with a ball over the top of the ADO defence. The youngster set to sign for Ajax in the summer had a ineffective game in the lone striker role before finding the net.

Dion Malone grabbed a 89th minute winner to give the hosts breathing space in their battle for survival. Alberg chipped the ball into Malone’s bearing down on goal for the finish.

TEAMS

ADO: Coutinho, Zuiverloon, Wormgoor, Beugelsdijk, Meijers, Malone, Bakker, Gehrt (Kramer 84), Schet (Van Haaren 90), Van Duinen, Alberg.

SUBS NOT USED: Zwinkles, Buwalda, Kanon, Merencia, Cabral.

GOALS: Alberg 63, Malone 89.

BOOKINGS: Malone 8, Wormgoor 71, Schet 85.

GRONINGEN: Bizot, Hateboer, Kappelhof, Botteghin, Burnet, Van Nieff (Zeefuik 90+1), Kieftenbeld, Chery, Van der Velden (Kostic 64), Zivkovic, Kirm (Wijnaldum 68).

SUBS NOT USED: Van der Lei, Hiariej, Lindgren, Adorjan.

GOALS: Zivkovic 78.

BOOKINGS: Van Nieff 51, Bizot 62, Hateboer 70, Burnet 90+4.

SENT OFF: Botteghin 61.

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BETTING TIPS, EREDIVISIE, EREDIVISIE PREVIEW

EREDIVISIE WEEK 28 – SATURDAY PREVIEW & BETTING TIPS

March 15, 2014 Will Burns Leave a comment

Will Burns returns with his selections for the Eredivisie for the Saturday’s three games and like all his tips, you will not see a ‘best bet’ under evens – good luck!

Saturday 15th March

VITESSE vs. PSV (17:45 GMT)

Phillip Cocu and PSV may have finally found his stride and they have eventually started to gel and knocked up six wins on the trot. Vitesse themselves suffered a sticky patch at the beginning of 2014 and have now hit three wins in a row, at least one of the winning streaks will end when they both meet at the GelreDome this Saturday evening.

In undoubtedly the game of the weekend, both sides have different goals. Vitesse are six points behind defending champions Ajax in second, whether PSV are only five points away from Vitesse in second and would love to end up with the Champions League qualification place. This would salvage on what can be classed as a poor season for the Eindhoven side.

Both Peter Bosz and Cocu have virtually full strength squads to choose from and recent history shows that PSV may have Vitesse’s number as the Eindhoven side are undefeated in their last 14 away matches against Vitesse in all competitions.

Watching the last three games for Vitesse we have seen them victorious against relegation contenders RKC and Roda at home and NAC Breda narrowly away last weekend. No great shakes from those three sides so I see PSV a great price at 19/10 at Bet Victor to continue their winning streak to seven in a row.

BEST BET: PSV to win (19/10 – Bet Victor) – Click here to bet on this market and receive up to £25 in free bets.

HERACLES vs. RODA JC (18:45 GMT)

After receiving a 4-0 pasting courtesy of AZ Alkmaar last weekend, Heracles are in real danger of being dragged into the relegation dogfight sitting just three points above the drop zone. Roda are deep into the relegation places and sit four points adrift but will head to Almelo with the confidence of last weekend’s 3-1 win over NEC Nijmegen.

Yes… shock horror… Jon Dahl Tomasson’s side stopped a run of six defeats on the bounce and scored three goals after not finding the net in four games in a row. The returning Guus Hupperts netted twice and he will be a real threat in this game. Heracles will look to Bryan Linssen, who has scored seven goals in his last ten outings to inspire them to victory.

I see the full-time whistle bring blown ending the game with a result neither side will want – a draw. Both need points but I feel this pressure may cause each side to cancel the other out. For the teams to end the game level, Betfair has offered a great 16/5 and I feel this is our best bet for value.

BEST BET: Draw (16/5 – Betfair)

ADO DEN HAAG vs. FC GRONINGEN (18:45 GMT)

Another two sides struggling this season are ADO Den Haag and FC Groningen, they meet on Saturday evening. However, for the home side, caretaker manager Henk Fräser has yet to taste defeat in his first five games.

Due to their decent form, ADO have gradually moved out of the drop zone with two wins and three draws they now sit two points clear of the bottom three. Groningen on the other hand have only won once and lost three in their last six and Edwin van der Looi will be eager to improve their point total of 30, to steer them away from being dragged down to the bottom.

To play it safe and for our best bet I look at the goals market. Groningen have scored just four in the last six outings with ADO going a tad better scoring six in six. If the current form runs on into this game, then we have to look at Under 2.5 Goals as our best bet. The highest price I can find is at Bet Victor at 5/4.

BEST BET: Under 2.5 Goals (5/4 – Bet Victor) – Click here to bet on this market and receive up to £25 in free bets.

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EREDIVISIE, EREDIVISIE REPORT

Week 27 Eredivisie Report: PSV on a roll as Vitesse move into 2nd

March 8, 2014 Will Burns Leave a comment

The resurgent PSV won their sixth game in a row, AZ continued their winning ways with a 4-0 thumping of Heracles, Roda ended their losing streak to lift themselves off the bottom and Vitesse Arnhem leapfrogged into second place in Saturday’s Eredivisie action.

Saturday 8th March 2014

AZ ALKMAAR 4-0 HERACLES

For the second home game in succession AZ handed out a 4-0 beating, this time, Heracles were on the wrong end of the lashing in Alkmaar.

AZ dominated throughout and the scoring began on 17 minutes after some excellent work on the right-wing by Steven Berghuis holding the ball up until Swedish full-back Mattias Johansson arrived. The Swede collected the ball in the area and put the ball on a plate for American striker Aron Jóhannsson to fire the ball in the roof of the goal.

Heracles were a goal down and Milano Koenders was blamed for placing his team under further pressure on 24 minutes. The defender was shown a straight red card by referee Jeroen Sanders for bringing down Jóhannsson when through on goal, replays shown that Sanders had got it wrong and no contact was made.

AZ pressed on and Aron Jóhannsson grabbed another goal in the 37th minute, as again Berghuis and Johansson combined on the right wing to set-up the American in the area to hold off two defenders to finish.

The AZ attacks were relentless and it was three on 79 minutes with Swedish right-back Mattias Johansson netting his own goal after providing two assists earlier with fellow compatriot Viktor Elm adding a fourth in stoppage time.

AZ stay in seventh place in the league 7th this week while Heracles are 12th only four points ahead of the drop zone.

TEAMS

AZ: Esteban, Johansson (Reijnen 83), Gouweleeuw, Viergever, Poulsen, Gudelj (Henriksen 83), Ortiz, Elm, Berghuis, Jóhannsson, Beerens (Lewis 70).

SUBS NOT USED: De Winter, Hoedt, Gorter.

GOALS: Johannson 16 & 37, Johansson 79, Elm 90.

BOOKINGS: None.

HERACLES: Pasveer, Te Wierik, Koenders, Veldmate (Quansah 21), Davidson, Cziommer (Bruns 63), Rienstra, Bel Hassani (Belterman 29), Rosheuvel, Uth, Linssen.

SUBS NOT USED: Telgenkamp, Dijk, Amoah, Tannane.

GOALS: None.

BOOKINGS: Bruns 78.

SENT OFF: Koenders 24.

RODA JC 3-1 NEC NIJMEGEN

At the bottom of the table, Roda JC and NEC Nijmegen switched places as Jon Dahl Tomasson’s side gained ended a six game losing streak with a 3-1 victory over their fellow strugglers.

Returning to the side after an injury, Guus Hupperts scored the first of his two goals after half an hour and he will not get an easier goal. NEC goalkeeper Karl-Johan Johnsson tried to clear the ball with a big kick upfield but was charged down by Berry Powel. Powel held the ball up until Hupperts arrived to tap home. It was maybe just the bit of luck Roda had needed after not scoring a goal for four matches.

Marc Hocher made it two on 53 minutes with a looping free-kick, chipping the ball over the Johnsson. It was not the Swedish goalkeeper’s day. Guus Hupperts notched his second three minutes later after Powel had played the winger through on goal.

English striker Michael Higdon reduced the arrears on the hour mark with his 11th goal of the season for the visitors, but it was to no avail and the score finished 3-1.

TEAMS

RODA: Kurto, Letschert, Luijckx, Ramos, Van Peppen, Sutchuin, Kali, Hupperts (Fledderus 90+4), Donald (De Beule 88), Höcher, Powel (Demouge 82).

SUBS NOT USED: Monteyne, Paulissen, Prus, Pluim.

GOALS: Hupperts 30 & 56, Höcher 53.

BOOKINGS: Kali 28, De Beule 90+1.

NEC: Johnsson, Vermijl, Nielsen, Haitz, Conboy, Štefánik (Palsson 54), Rieks, Koolwijk, Jahanbakhsh (Hemlein 54), Higdon, Foor.

SUBS NOT USED: Gentenaar, Disveld, Mulder, Jantscher, Leiwakabessy.

GOALS: Higdon 60.

BOOKINGS: None.

SENT OFF: Palsson 90+1.

HEERENVEEN 3-0 PEC ZWOLLE

Marco van Basten lead his Heerenveen side to a great 3-0 home win against Ron Jans’ Zwolle at the Abe Lenstra Stadion to stay in sixth place.

After an even first half, where both sides had their chances to take the lead, the opening goal finally came on 37 minutes as Bilal Basacikoglu shrugged off two defenders to slot past Zwolle ‘keeper Kevin Begois after Alfred Finnbogasson had played the midfielder into the box.

In the 68th minute, Rajiv van La Parra made it 2-0 with an excellent goal. After receiving the ball from Joey van den Berg on the left side of the area, the winger took one touch to set himself up to curl home into the top corner giving Begois no chance of stopping.

All three points were cemented for Heerenveen ten minutes later with Alfred Finnbogason once again scoring. It was 23rd goal in 24 games in the Eredivisie this season, finishing Van la Parra defence splitting ball to slide the ball home.

Heerenveen sit in sixth with Zwolle comfortable in eighth, and both will be gunning for European football next term.

TEAMS

HEERENVEEN: Nordfeldt, Dijks (Marzo 33), Kum, Van Anholt, Kruiswijk, De Roon, Van den Berg, Ziyech (Sinkgraven 80), Van la Parra, Finnbogason, Basacikoglu.

SUBS NOT USED: Vandenbussche, Otigba, De Kamps, Slagveer, Fazli.

GOALS: Basacikoglu 37, Van la Parra 68, Finnbogason 77.

BOOKINGS: Van Anholt 64.

ZWOLLE: Begois, Van Polen, Van der Werff, Van Hintum, Broerse, Saymak (Nijland 74), Karagounis (Narsingh 66), Drost, Thomas (Fennich 84), Benson, Hiwat.

SUBS NOT USED: Ter Wielen, Mahmudov, Pereira.

GOALS: None.

BOOKINGS: Karagounis 41, Van Polen 47.

NAC BREDA 1-2 VITESSE

Mike Havenaar secured a 2-1 win for Vitesse away to NAC Breda to put his side into second place on Saturday night.

Three first-half goals decided the game and it was January signing Zakaria Labyad, on-loan from Sporting Lisbon, who notched his first goal for Vitesse within the first eight minutes. The midfielder capitalised on some slack defending by Mats Seuntjens and finished the ball past Jelle ten Rouwelaar with perfection.

The visiting fans were not celebrating for long. NAC were soon back on terms after Bjorn Kuipers pointed to the spot when he adjudged Jan-Arie van der Heijden to foul Rydell Poepon in the area. Ten minutes gone and it was 1-1 after Jordy Buijs converted the penalty kick.

However, Peter Bosz men walked away with all three points and their third win on the trot thanks to a Mike Havenaar goal on 26 minutes. The Japanese striker volleyed home a Christian Atsu cross at the front post.

Vitesse temporarily moved up into second place with FC Twente to play in Sunday’s game. Breda stay in tenth spot six points above the drop zone.

TEAMS

NAC: Ten Rouwelaar, De Roover, Drost, Buijs, Bodor, Kwakman, Matic, Seuntjens, Hooi, Poepon (Perica 24), Verbeek (Sarpong 35).

SUBS NOT USED: Babos, Suk, El Allouchi, Swerts, Van der Weg.

GOALS: Buijs 10P.

BOOKINGS: Ten Rouwelaar 26.

VITESSE: Velthuizen, Van der Struijk, Kashia, Van der Heijden, Achenteh, Vejinovic, Pröpper, Labyad (Qazaishvili 81), Atsu (Piazón 61), Havenaar, Ibarra.

SUBS NOT USED: Room, Mori, Djurdjevic, Traoré, Van Aanholt.

GOALS: Labyad 8, Havenaar 26.

BOOKINGS: None.

PSV 1-0 FC UTRECHT

Philip Cocu witnessed his side win their sixth game in a row to jump into fourth spot still in hope of clinching Champions League football next season.

Dominating the possession the entire game, poor finishing and excellent goalkeeping from Robbin Ruiter stopped PSV running away with the game. The scoreline was not reflective of the hosts’ control as a clutch of first-half chances went begging.

However, the decisive goal arrived on 50 minutes as Jürgen Locadia notched his ninth goal of the campaign with a scrappy goal. After Locadia fluffed his first chance with the ball, Matthieu Delpierre and Kai Heerings failed to clear and the young striker got another bite of the cherry to score.

PSV still have their eyes on the Champions League place and clinching all 18 points out of a possible 18 in their last six games they have gave themselves a great chance.

TEAMS

PSV: Zoet, Arias, Bruma, Rekik, Willems, Hiljemark, Park (Maher 82), Schaars, Narsingh (Ruiz 77), Locadia (Matavz 88), Depay.

SUBS NOT USED: Tyton, Brenet, Zanka Jørgensen, Van Ooijen.

GOALS: Locadia 51.

BOOKINGS: Schaars 40.

UTRECHT: Ruiter, Markiet, Heerings (Bjelica 77), Delpierre, Dorda, Sarota (Agudelo 61), Mårtensson, Toornstra, Ayoub (Van der Gun 62), Oar, De Ridder.

SUBS NOT USED: Verhoeven, Diemers, Quesada, Klaiber.

GOALS: None.

BOOKINGS: De Ridder 21, Toornstra 41, Heerings 54, Delpierre 85, Van der Gun 87.

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BETTING TIPS, EREDIVISIE, EREDIVISIE PREVIEW

EREDIVISIE WEEK 27 – SATURDAY PREVIEW & BETTING TIPS

March 8, 2014 Will Burns Leave a comment

After nailing 11 out of his last 14 selections, Will Burns is on fire and he returns with his picks for the Eredivisie for Saturday games and like all his tips, you will not see a ‘best bet’ under evens – good luck!

Saturday 8th March

AZ ALKMAAR vs. HERACLES (17:45 GMT)

Although Heracles were unlucky to lose at home to Heerenveen last weekend, I cannot see them turning things around in Alkmaar as they travel to face a AZ who thumped RKC Waalwijk 4-0 last Sunday.

Good news for the visitors is that regular first-teamers Mike te Wierik and Bryan Linssen return from suspension as they look to gain their first win in five games. They do not have a good record at the AFAS Stadion, with AZ winning eight of their last nine home matches against Heracles in all competitions.

I see that record stretching to a ninth win in ten and by a couple of goals. The best bet of the day is in the handicap market at Bet365.com with AZ Alkmaar -1 valued at 6/5. So we need AZ Alkmaar to win by two clear goals for this bet to come in

BURNS’ BEST BET: AZ Alkmaar -1 (6/5 at Bet365) – Open an account with bet365 today and qualify for up to £200 in free bets with our fantastic 100% Initial Deposit Bonus.

RODA JC vs. NEC NIJMEGEN (17:45 GMT)

The basement boys clash in a vital relegation six-pointer as Roda host NEC and if the home side experience a defeat, then they could be nine points adrift from safety by the end of the weekend.

Jon Dahl Tomasson’s side are in major trouble and they need to find a run of results and quick. Currently six points from safety, they know that this game on Saturday is a must-win fixture but their main problem is front of goal. Roda have not scored a single goal in the last four games.

However, on the other side, why NEC are deep in the relegation quagmire is their away form. The Nijmegen side have failed to win 17 of their last 18 away matches in Eredivisie. However, who will win this game does not interest me when looking at my best bet.

Roda will struggle in front of goal again in this one especially with their main source of goals; Guus Hupperts, Jan-Mark Fledderus, Frank Demouge, Krisztian Németh and Anco Jansen are all out through injury. They may get one since Nijmegen have not kept a clean sheet for seven matches.

Under 2.5 Goals is valued at 6/4 with our friends at BetVictor and I see that our best bet.

BURNS’ BEST BET: Under 2.5 Goals (6/4 – BetVictor) – Click here to bet on this market and receive up to £25 in free bets.

HEERENVEEN vs. PEC ZWOLLE (18:45 GMT)

After watching Zwolle’s defence concede three goals at home to NEC Nijmegen last weekend, I predict that this one will be a barnburner with goals galore.

Heerenveen are well capable of scoring goals with the astounding strikepower of Alfred Finnbogason leading their line. The Icelandic hitman has hit the back of the net an astonishing 22 times in the 23 appearances this season.

On-loan striker Guyon Fernandez is also in good scoring form for Zwolle, notching six goals in the last nine games. With the unpredictable Mitchell Dijks sitting in Marco van Basten’s defence, Heerenveen are also open to conceding, they have let 44 goals past in their 26 games this season.

The price of 5/4 that Bet365 are offering for Over 3.5 Goals is well worth a punt.

BURNS’ BEST BET: Over 3.5 Goals (5/4 – Bet365) – Open an account with bet365 today and qualify for up to £200 in free bets with our fantastic 100% Initial Deposit Bonus.

NAC BREDA vs. VITESSE (19:45 GMT)

Vitesse seem to have got over the horror show that the start of 2014 brought to Peter Bosz’s side with two home wins in succession. The Arnhem outfit head to Breda with hope that they can clinch the number two spot in the Eredivisie to qualify for Champions League football.

The hosts, NAC Breda, are in good form themselves and are undefeated in six games that has took them to 10th in the league. Although four of those games have ended in draws.

Vitesse have also had their fair share of draws with three in the last seven games ending level. The last two games have brought wins but at home against two of the three clubs in the drop zone, RKC and Roda so I’m not getting excited by those two results. Bet365 are offering a huge 3/1 for the draw in this one and I see this one landing.

BURNS’ BEST BET: Draw (3/1 – Bet365) – Open an account with bet365 today and qualify for up to £200 in free bets with our fantastic 100% Initial Deposit Bonus.

PSV vs. FC UTRECHT (19:45 GMT)

The final game on Saturday sees FC Utrecht travel to Philips Stadion to face the in-form PSV, who are currently on a hot five-game winning streak.

Philip Cocu has seen his fortunes turned around, and last week’s fantastic 3-2 win away to the tenacious Go Ahead Eagles showed great character coming back from two goals down to take the three points.

FC Utrecht sit in 13th and are undefeated in their last three and with two respectable draws with FC Twente and AZ Alkmaar sandwiching a 1-0 win over Groningen, Utrecht could be capable of getting a something in Eindhoven and bursting Cocu’s bubble.

I see PSV winning again but to give us some real value I see Over 3.5 Goals as our best bet.

BURNS’ BEST BET: Over 3.5 Goals (11/10 – BetVictor) – Click here to bet on this market and receive up to £25 in free bets.

Click the name above to follow Will on Twitter.

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EREDIVISIE

Week 26 Eredivisie Report: Heracles fail in front of goal

February 28, 2014 Will Burns Leave a comment

Friday 28th February 2014

HERACLES 1-2 HEERENVEEN

Heracles head coach Jan de Jonge will be cursing his forward line tonight as he witnessed many missed opportunities as his team were defeated by Heerenveen by two goals to one.

Heracles dominated the early proceedings as they were roared on by a loud capacity inside the Polman Stadion. Marco van Basten’s men found it hard to get their game together and misplaced pass after pass.

The hosts gained a deserving lead with a magnificent free-kick from Oussama Tannane, scoring against the club he left in the summer. On 26 minutes, after a foul on Simon Cziommer by Joey van den Berg, Tannane stepped up from 30 yards out and curled a left foot shot past the stretched out Kristoffer Nordfeldt.

Heracles were not in front for long as Van Basten’s side grabbed an equaliser against the run of play and it was another set-piece that provide the goal. Hakim Ziyech whipped in a dangerous ball from deep and Marten de Roon slipped the marking of Mikhail Rosheuvel to nod into Remko Pasveer’s goal.

Heracles stepped up their game and pressed for the lead before half-time but unfortunately after only getting a total of six out of 17 shots on target, the goal never came.

After the break, Alfred Finnbogason stopped his goal drought of no goals in TWO games on 49 minutes. It was great build up play on the counter attack that ended with De Roon lofting a ball over the top for Rajiv van La Parra on the left wing. Van La Parra forced a save from Pasveer, but the rebound fell kindly for the Icelandic striker to notch his 22nd goal in 23 appearances. His unbelievable scoring record continues as he has hit 22 of his teams 53 goals in this Eredivisie campaign.

Near the end of time, Van Basten was foaming with referee Jeroen Manschot and his fellow match officials when Heracles defender Bart Schenkeveld intentionally shouldered Ziyech down to the ground. As the player was running onto the ball, the defender stood firm and clattered the midfielder, who was replaced later in the game with a head injury. Although the officials missed it but the TV cameras did not. This would have been the defender’s second yellow card.

Heracles had a golden chance in the final moments but substitute Matthew Amoah dragged a shot wide from around 8 yards out. Heerenveen stay in sixth, just a point away from PSV in fifth while Heracles are in 11th on 30 points, just four away from the drop zone.

TEAMS

HERACLES: Pasveer, Rienstra, Davidson, Schenkeveld, Koenders (Amoah 81), Quansah, Bel Hassani (Bruns 78), Cziommer. Uth, Tannane, Rosheuvel.

SUBS NOT USED: Telgenkamp, Navratil, Gyasi, Rienstra, Belterman.

GOALS: Tannane 26.

BOOKINGS: Schenkeveld 67.

HEERENVEEN: Nordfeldt, Dijks (Marzo 64), Kum, Kruiswijk, Van Anholt, Van den Berg, De Roon. Ziyech (De Kamps 87), Fazli, Finnbogason, Van La Parra (Sinkgraven 90+3).

SUBS NOT USED: Vandenbussche, Otigba, Lurling, Varga.

GOALS: De Roon 36, Finnbogason 49.

BOOKINGS: Van den Berg 51.

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BETTING TIPS, EREDIVISIE, EREDIVISIE PREVIEW

EREDIVISIE WEEK 26 – FRIDAY’S PREVIEW & BETTING TIPS

February 28, 2014 Will Burns Leave a comment

Tipster Will Burns is back with his picks for the Eredivisie this Friday’s game and like all his tips, you will not see a ‘best bet’ under evens – good luck!

Friday 28th February

HERACLES vs. HEERENVEEN (19:00 GMT)

Heracles will host Heerenveen on Friday night as they look for their first win in three games.

Marco van Basten welcomes Hakim Ziyech, Marten de Roon and Joey van den Berg back from suspension and all three will be set to return to the starting line-up. Speaking of suspensions, Heracles are without dangerman Bryan Linssen and defender Mike te Weirek due to bookings they picked up last weekend at PEC Zwolle.

Although Heracles were unlucky not to win that game and conceded a late equaliser, I cannot see them getting anything in this one. Heerenveen will be too strong and at 11/5, the price offered by our friends at BetVictor, this is a bet we cannot ignore and hopefully get our weekend off to a good start.

BURNS’ BEST BET: Heerenveen to win (11/5 – BetVictor) – Click here to bet on this market and receive up to £25 in free bets.

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