Preview: PEC Zwolle vs. Heerenveen - prediction, team news, lineups

De Superfriezen failed to pick up a morale-boosting result last time out when they fell to a mid-season friendly defeat at the hands of Almere City and will be looking to find their feet this weekend.

Match preview

Heading into the business end of the season, PEC Zwolle will feel satisfied with their performance in the first half of the campaign as they sit three points off the Conference League playoff places.

HAving returned to the top flight in May after finishing runners-up in the Eerste Divisie, the Blauwvingers have picked up five wins and three draws in their 16 matches so far to sit 11th in the Eredivisie table, one point and two places behind Saturday's hosts.

Johnny Jansen's men turned in a fine show of fighting spirit in their final game of the year as they came from two goals down to salvage a 2-2 draw against Ajax at the Johan Cruijff Arena.

Brian Brobbey continued his fine form in front of goal as he scored a brace to put the 36-time Dutch champions two goals up but Lennart Thy struck twice in the final half-hour to force a share of the spoils.

While this marked another impressive result on their travels, where they are unbeaten in four of their last five matches, Zwolle now return home where they have lost four of their last five games and picked up just four points from the last 18 available.

Heerenveen, on the other hand, were in action during the Dutch mid-season break as they suffered a 4-2 friendly defeat against Almere City at the Sportpark De Bakenbos last Saturday.

Goals from Rajiv Van La Parra, Jaden Pinas and a first-half brace from Layee Kromah put De Zwarte Schapen in a commanding four-goal lead before Simon Olsson and Pelle van Amersfoort scored in a two-minute spell to half the deficit.

De Superfriezen have now lost four games on the bounce across all competitions, including successive defeats against PSV Eindhoven and Volendam in the league and a 1-0 loss to Vitesse in the Dutch Cup on December 21.

This drop-off in form has been owing to their struggles at the back, where Heerenven have conceded nine goals in their last four matches and shipped the joint-most goals in the top half of the table (30).

Kees Van Wonderen's men currently sit ninth in the Eredivisie standings, level on points with 10th-placed Fortuna Sittard and just two points behind NEC Nijmegen in the final Conference League playoff spot.

While Heerenven will be looking to stop the rot this weekend and resume their quest for European football, results on the road offer little optimism as they have lost seven of their last eight away matches in all competitions since the start of September.

PEC Zwolle Eredivisie form:

W

L

L

W

L

D

Heerenveen Eredivisie form:

L

W

W

W

L

L

Heerenveen form (all competitions):

W

W

W

L

L

L

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Team News

Zwolle will take to the pitch without Irish left-back Anselmo Garcia McNulty, who is currently suspended after crossing the yellow card threshold with his booking against Ajax last time out.

In his absence, teenage defender Damian van der Haar will push for his first league start of the season, forming the back four with Thomas Lam, Sam Kersten and skipper Bram van Polen.

On the injury front, the Blauwvingers will be without the services of 20-year-old midfielder Samir Lagsir, who continues his lengthy spell on the sidelines after suffering a severe knee problem in February 2023.

As for Heerenveen, 21-year-old defender Hussein Ali will play no part in this weekend's game as he is currently away on international duty with the Iraq national team at the Asian Cup.

Barring any late fitness issues, Ali should be the only absentee for De Superfriezen, who boast a clean bill of health and no suspension concerns, giving Van Wonderen the luxury of a relatively full strength squad at his disposal.

PEC Zwolle possible starting lineup:

Schendelaar; Van Polen, Kersten, Lam, Van der Haar; Buurmeester, Van den Berg; Namli, Druijf, Velanas; Thy

Heerenveen possible starting lineup:

Noppert; Braude, Van Beek, Van Ottele, Kohlert; Olsson, Haye; Nunnely, Brouwers, Sahraoui; Van Amersfoort

We say: PEC Zwolle 1-1 Heerenveen

There have been just one goal scored in each of the last four meetings between Zwolle and Heerenveen and we anticipate another cagey affair at the MAC³PARK Stadion this weekend. We predict both sides will cancel out each other's efforts and settle for a share of the spoils.

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