De Graafschap vs PSV Predictions

De Graafschap were narrowly beaten in Alkmaar last weekend, while their guests on Saturday, PSV, continued their 100% start to the season courtesy of a 1-0 win at home against Vitesse. De Graafschap have a poor record against PSV and the way the visitors have been playing this season suggests this will be the newly promoted club’s toughest home game of the campaign.

De Graafschap put up a brave defensive display which almost earned them a point against AZ Alkmaar on Saturday, but the hosts eventually earned the win their performance deserved. The first half ended goalless despite the best efforts of AZ who created a number of goal scoring opportunities, but couldn’t find their way past Jurjus in the visitors goal.

The second half played out in the same manner as the first with AZ doing all the attacking and De Graafschap seemingly content to play for a draw. The visitors had no shots on target during the ninety minutes, and only one that went off target, while AZ held 67% of the overall possession and seventeen shots in the match.

Only one of those seventeen shots ended up in the back of the net, but that’s all the home side needed and they had Seuntjens to thank as it was his seventy-sixth minute effort that confirmed all three points for AZ. There is nothing wrong with De Graafschap playing more negatively away from home, they are newly promoted let’s not forget and a point away from home could make a huge difference in their bid to remain in the Eredivisie for another season.

Serrarens has three goals in the league and top scores for De Graafschap this season, while teammates El Jebli and Nijland have both chipped in with two goals apiece. Goals are not something PSV have had any troubles with this season, and with nine strikes in the Eredivisie it’s de Jong who leads the way in front of goal for the current champions.

Despite Vitesse being reduced to ten-men in the fourteenth minute, following Doekhi’s straight red card, PSV only managed a 1-0 win over their guest last weekend. The two sides went in goalless at the break with Vitesse regrouping well after that early setback, and despite that extra man advantage PSV weren’t as dominant as you might expect.

The hosts ended the game with 59% of the overall possession, but only managed five shots on target to their guests two. The only stat that really mattered though was the sixty-ninth minute goal from de Jong that took the Dutchman onto nine league goals for the campaign and earned PSV an eleventh win in eleven matches.

PSV have some excellent goal scoring options, so that even when de Jong had a poor game in front of goal, teammates Lozano on eight league goals, and Pereiro on seven, usually step up to take on the burden of being the match winner. It’s hard to imagine De Graafschap standing any chance of even claiming a point from Saturday’s game, and they are going to need a solid defensive display or their best attacking performance of the season to claim even a point against in form PSV.

We’re confident that PSV will win and that both teams will score in the process, and have backed the final score to be 3-1 to the visitors. PSV have won all of their eleven Eredivisie games this season, while De Graafschap have lost four of their last five in league and cup. PSV have won five of the last six meetings between the two clubs, and both teams have scored in the last four encounters.