Preview: Fortuna Sittard vs. FC Volendam - prediction, team news, lineups

After four games, the hosts are sitting ninth in the table, while the visitors are currently down in 15th place, having only contested three matches.

Match preview

Fortuna Sittard have made a solid start to the Eredivisie season, taking six points from their opening four games, but they may be a little disappointed they have not been able to turn some of their draws into wins.

Sittard are undefeated in the league so far this season, drawing 2-2 away at Excelsior back in August, while they have also put in some very promising performances against two of the best sides in the league.

Danny Buijs's side kicked off the campaign with a 0-0 draw away at reigning champions Feyenoord, which is a great result on paper, but the door was open for them to pick up a shock victory, with the hosts being reduced to 10 men after 25 minutes.

Fortuna Sittard also managed to hold Ajax to a draw at home in their last match, but they again missed a fantastic opportunity to take all three points, with Tijjani Noslin failing to convert a first-half penalty.

Even so, Buijs is likely to be very happy with his side's start to the campaign, and he will now be hoping they can build on their promising start against a side they have a very good recent record against at home, winning the last three matches without conceding.

FC Volendam, on the other hand, have made a very disappointing start to their campaign, as they are yet to get a single point on the board, losing their opening three games.

Volendam kicked off the campaign with a 2-1 loss against Vitesse at home, before falling to a heavy 4-1 defeat against Go Ahead Eagles in their first away match of the season.

The 2-0 loss at home against FC Twente last time out is more understandable, but Matthias Kohler will be disappointed his side hardly landed a glove on their opponents, recording just two shots on target in the whole match.

If the Palingboeren are to avoid being dragged into a relegation battle this season, their form will have to pick up in the immediate future, but they have struggled away from home for a long time, picking up just eight points in 17 matches on the road last season.

Fortuna Sittard Eredivisie form:

L

D

D

W

D

D

Fortuna Sittard form (all competitions):

D

W

D

W

D

D

FC Volendam Eredivisie form:

W

L

W

L

L

L

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Team News

Fortuna Sittard have no injury issues to deal with, meaning Buijs is very unlikely to make any changes to the team that put in a very promising performance against Ajax in their last Eredivisie game.

The manager is likely to implement a 4-2-3-1 system, with Noslin leading the line, being supported by Alen Halilovic through the middle, with Mouhamed Belkheir and Inigo Cordoba on either side.

Volendam have a number of players out with injury, including Koen Blommestijn, Oskar Buur, and Achraf Douiri, who are all yet to feature so far this season.

Considering Buijs's side have been very poor up to this point, the manager may choose to make a couple of changes, with youngster Quincy Hoeve potentially coming in for Lequincio Zeefuik in attack.

Fortuna Sittard possible starting lineup:

Pandur; Pinto, Guth, Siovas, Dijks; Rosier, Duarte, Cordoba, Halilovic, Belkheir; Noslin

FC Volendam possible starting lineup:

Backhaus; Plat, Benamar, Mirani, Payne; Nazih, De Haan, Twigt; Ould-Chikh, Kuol, Hoeve

We say: Fortuna Sittard 3-0 FC Volendam

Although they have not got the results to show for it, Fortuna Sittard have been very impressive so far this season, while FC Volendam have been completely outplayed in all three of their games.

With that in mind, the hosts should be able to record a comprehensive victory this weekend, and they may end up winning by a considerable margin.

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