NEC Nijmegen vs Sparta Rotterdam Predictions

Leaders Sparta Rotterdam overcame a dreadful start to eventually run out 4-2 winners at home to bottom side Jong Utrecht last week, as the deadly Lars Veldwijk thumped in a hat-trick to go top of the Eerste Divisie scoring charts. The result extended Sparta’s unbeaten run in the league to 12 and the Rotterdam outfit will be confident of gaining further momentum this Sunday at Goffertstadion as they take on an NEC side that have lost four of their last six league outings.

Few gave whipping boys Jong Utrecht any kind of chance at Het Kasteel last Friday but Robin Pronk’s side stunned Sparta with two early goals from Sow and Venema.

Sparta needed a helping hand to respond and got back into the game thanks to an own goal from van Der Meer half an hour in, and that gave them the impetus they needed to take control of the fixture. Lars Veldwijk converted a penalty minutes later to equalise, before notching his 12^th and 13^th goals of the campaign to seal a brilliant hat-trick and another three points for Henk Fraser’s side.

Fraser won’t have been pleased with how his charges started the game, but the victory was comfortable enough in the end and it’s usually a good sign for any side when they’re winning without playing well – even if it was against Eerste Divisie’s worst side.

An away fixture at NEC this Sunday demands a step up from Sparta, but the Rotterdam outfit will feel they can stamp their authority over Jack De Gier’s side who have largely been disappointing this term.

NEC were unbeaten in the first seven games of the season but their performances weren’t reflecting their results, and they’ve been found out badly in recent weeks.

A 4-0 hammering at Jong Ajax last week was NEC’s fourth defeat in six Eerste Divisie outings, and the club currently sit 8^th in the table and five points adrift of the Play-off places as a result.

NEC’s main issue this term has been their dwindling home form – they were a real force to be reckoned with at Goffertstadion in going unbeaten throughout the 2017/18 campaign, but they’ve only won two of their seven matches in Nijmegen this season, conceding 14 goals in the process.

It’s something De Gier’s side will have to address rapidly if they’re to emerge as possible promotion contenders, but this Sunday’s clash with Sparta doesn’t look a good place to start with the leaders looking a class apart from all sides at the moment bar 3^rd placed Den Bosch who’ve landed seven wins on the spin.

So this is quite a straightforward one for us with Sparta marked up at a great price for the win. We’re backing Henk Fraser’s side to bag their 10^th success of the campaign with 1-2 our correct score prediction.