Groningen vs Pec Zwolle
Groningen vs PEC Zwolle Preview
Friday night football at the Euroborg and there is a bit of desperation in the air on both sides of this one. Groningen and PEC Zwolle arrive at matchday seven of the Eredivisie season having both forgotten what it feels like to win, and with the international break lurking just around the corner, neither side wants to head into a fortnight off sitting in the wrong half of the table feeling sorry for themselves. It is the kind of fixture where the league table context does most of the talking before a ball is even kicked.
Groningen got off to a flyer this season, picking up six points from their opening two matches, but that early promise has evaporated almost completely. They have taken just two points from the four games since, and last Saturday they let a lead slip at Go Ahead Eagles to draw 1-1 for the second time in a row from a winning position. Dick Lukkien will be acutely aware that his side cannot keep dropping those late points. Going five league games without a win would be a serious alarm bell, especially given they were through a miserable six-game losing streak earlier in the year. They need to put this right, and they need to do it at home.
PEC Zwolle are in an even darker place. They sit in the bottom three already and their schedule to open the season has been brutal, every one of their first seven opponents finishing in the top ten last term. But there is no getting around the 7-0 hammering Feyenoord handed them at the Mac3Park on Sunday. That is not a scoreline you brush off. Henry van der Vegt is under real pressure and his side need a response, fast. This is their last chance to grab something before the international break and the slightly kinder run of fixtures that follows.
Groningen vs PEC Zwolle Form
Look at Groningen’s numbers this season and there is genuine reason to back them here despite the stuttering recent run. Three-quarters of their 12 league goals have arrived in the first half, which tells you something about how they set up and come out of the blocks. They play on the front foot early, they put teams under pressure, and they have clearly worked hard on making the Euroborg a place where they impose themselves quickly. The problem is that the second half collapses have cost them points they should have had in the bag. Two successive 1-1 draws where they were winning is maddening, but the underlying performance levels have not been terrible.
Zwolle’s form in front of goal is the real concern for their gaffer. Only Telstar have scored fewer in the Eredivisie this season, and at the other end they have shipped 17, a total only bettered in terms of misery by Willem II and FC Utrecht. Seven of those goals have come in the first half across their last five outings, which is an absolutely horrible pattern to be carrying into a match against a side that loves to get at you early. The Feyenoord result was catastrophic, three of those seven conceded in the opening period alone. If Zwolle come here and allow Groningen to do what they have been doing to teams in the first 45 minutes, this could turn ugly again.
Neither side has been consistent enough to inspire huge confidence, but the momentum gap is significant. Groningen are unbeaten in their last two and showed character in bouncing back from those consecutive defeats to PSV and Fortuna Sittard. Zwolle are on a five-game winless run and just got torn apart by one of the league’s best attacks. The direction of travel for these two clubs right now is pointing in very different directions.
Groningen vs PEC Zwolle Head to Head
The head-to-head record here makes for interesting reading but should not be taken too literally. Groningen have not beaten Zwolle since May 2021, an eight-game winless run in this fixture, but six of those eight meetings have ended in draws rather than Zwolle victories. Last season both clashes finished level, and on both occasions Groningen were the better side on the pitch without managing to take all three points. That is mildly encouraging for the hosts because it suggests they have been close without quite getting over the line, rather than being genuinely outplayed by their rivals.
The venue record matters here too. Groningen at the Euroborg are a different proposition to Groningen on the road, and with Zwolle carrying the kind of defensive fragility they currently have, the long-running head-to-head stalemate feels ripe for breaking. Home advantage, the crowd, and the context of needing a result all point towards Groningen finally turning one of these draws into three points.
Groningen vs PEC Zwolle Lineups
Groningen are dealing with a few injury concerns heading into Friday. Malcolm Jeng, Tyrique Mercera, Nikolas Brandis and Travis Hernes are all unavailable, which puts some pressure on the defensive options Lukkien has to work with. Ryan Metu is set to miss out for the sixth game in a row, though Marco Rente does come back into contention after missing the last two matches, which gives the gaffer at least one welcome option returning to the fold. Up front, Brynjolfur Willumsson is the man to watch. He grabbed the equaliser against Go Ahead Eagles last week and has now scored four goals in six league appearances this season. He is in form and Groningen will be looking to get the ball to him early.
Zwolle arrive with their own injury headaches. Filip Krastev is out with an Achilles tendon problem picked up on loan at Goztepe, and Younes Namli is also expected to miss out. Ryan Thomas and Sherel Floranus both sat out the Feyenoord defeat and remain doubts, which leaves Van der Vegt with limited options in midfield and attack. A depleted, demoralised away side coming off the back of a 7-0 hiding is not exactly the most threatening of opponents. Groningen’s expected lineup looks solid enough to handle what Zwolle bring, even accounting for their own defensive absences.
Groningen vs PEC Zwolle Tactics
Groningen under Lukkien tend to be proactive and direct, particularly in the opening period of games. That first-half scoring record is not an accident. They press high, they try to win the ball back quickly, and they get numbers forward early before opposition sides can settle into defensive shapes. With Willumsson leading the line and the likes of Van Bergen and Van der Werff capable of arriving late into the box, they can generate real problems for a back four that has been all over the place this season. The key for Groningen is converting that early pressure into goals, because when they have let games drift into the second half level, the concentration drops and points slip away.
Zwolle will almost certainly set up with a compact defensive structure, knowing they cannot go toe-to-toe with a team playing at home with something to prove. Van der Vegt will not want another humiliation. The problem is that compactness requires organisation and defensive intelligence, and right now his side are showing neither. Conceding seven first-half goals across their last five games suggests that no matter how defensive the gameplan, they are being undone by basic errors and poor shape at set pieces. Groningen should be able to exploit that, and if they can get the early goal their stats suggest they are capable of, this tie could open up significantly.
Groningen vs PEC Zwolle Prediction and Betting Tips
Both teams have scored in all six of Groningen’s league matches this season, which is a remarkable stat and suggests backing goals at both ends is a reasonable starting point for this one. Zwolle have found the net despite their struggles, so they are unlikely to be completely shut out here. But the combination of Groningen’s home form, their attacking intent in the first half, and the structural chaos Zwolle are carrying at the back makes a home win the most logical outcome. Groningen need this, their fans need this after a string of disappointing results, and the opponents coming to town are about as vulnerable as any side in the division right now.
The tip is Groningen to win and both teams to score. Willumsson is in good nick, the hosts should get at Zwolle early, and a Zwolle side that has found a way to score even in a 7-0 defeat should nick one here. Back Groningen to win with both sides on the scoresheet at the Euroborg on Friday night.