Twente welcome Excelsior to the De Groersje Feste on Saturday. The hosts pursue their continental ambitions, while the visitors scrape to survive on the business end. Eredivisie standings.

Both teams are eight places apart, so they have a good chance of taking all three points despite their contrasting league positions.

Match preview

Twente arrived on a positive note under coach John van den Blom, unbeaten in 12 games in all competitions, with their last defeat coming back in October.

Pride of the East showed resilience last time out with a controlled 2-0 win over bottom team Hercules, fighting through the game despite Ramiz Zerlouki being sent off in the second half.

However, home advantage doesn’t necessarily mean the best returns, with Enschede’s side having won just four of their nine league games at De Florsje Feste this season, dropping 12 points.

Once again leading the team was the ageless Ricky van Wolfswinkel, who scored seven goals in 19 appearances and added another in the victory over Hercules.

© Icon Sports / Pro Shot / Icon Sports

As for Excelsior, coach Ruben den Uyl’s side head east in search of stability after winning just one of their last five league games.

Miliano Jonathans came on in the 81st minute for the Rotterdammers in their last game against AZ and snatched a valuable point from a 1-1 draw.

Much of their attacking impetus comes from Noah Naujokus, who has become the club’s leading marksman with six goals in his last eight appearances.

Excelsior can take confidence from their 1-0 comeback win against Twente earlier in the campaign thanks to Mike van Duinen’s late heroics, but history is not so encouraging, having recorded just one win in their last eight meetings with the Reds.

FC Twente Eredivisie form:

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FC Twente form (all competitions):

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SBV Excelsior Eredivisie Form:

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team news

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Twente will once again have to make do without Mies Hilgers, as the defender continues to recover from an anterior cruciate ligament injury sustained in November, which is likely to keep him out for the rest of the season, with Taylor Booth also sidelined.

Coach Zerluki was suspended for three games after being sacked last weekend and will not be selected for this match, with Arno Verschulen likely to start.

For the away team, Stefan Mitrovic has missed the past five games due to illness and remains sidelined, requiring a late evaluation.

Emil Hansson, who joined in January, impressed on his full debut against Telstar before starting against AZ, with the winger aiming to once again maintain his place in the starting XI.

FC Twente’s expected starting lineup:

Annastall; M. Lotz, Propper, Lemkin, Van Rooy. Van den Belt, Verschulen, Frinson. Orjasaeter, D. Rots; van Wolfswinkel

SBV Excelsior starting candidates:

Van Gassel. Zagra, Videl, Meissen, Bronkhorst. Egoian, Halches, Nauyoku. Hanson, Fernandes, Berggraaf

FC Twente 2-1 SBV Excelsior

The hosts’ long unbeaten record and the reliability of Van Wolfswinkel’s attack will be enough to overcome an Excelsior side who are dangerous at the break but often fall short of Rotterdam.

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