ADO Den Haag vs FC Emmen Predictions, Betting Tips and Match Previews

Den Haag put in some impressive performances last season and earned their seventh place finish, but with more players leaving the club than joining over the summer their squad hasn’t really improved. On Sunday newly promoted Emmen provide the opposition at the Kyocera Stadion, and after gaining promotion through the play-offs the visitors have the lowest expectations on their shoulders this season, and many have tipped them to go straight back down.

Den Haag have so far only brought in three new players to the club, and none of them have cost a single penny. Goalkeeper Mike Havekotte arrives on a free transfer from SBV Excelsior, while full back Dion Malone joins from Gabala also on a free transfer, and Chinese striker Yuning Zhang has arrived on-loan from West Bromwich Albion.

Norwegian forward Björn Johnsen had a fantastic season for Den Haag, scoring plenty of goals, so it was no surprise when some of the Eredivisie’s bigger clubs came calling and in the end it was AZ Alkmaar who signed the striker for around £2m. Goalkeeper Tim Coremans was allowed to leave on a free transfer, as was veteran French midfielder Édouard Duplan, while Benfica picked up full back Tyronne Ebuehi at the end of his contract.

The last six matches haven’t gone as planned for Den Haag with just two ending in victory and four in defeat. Den Haag beat both Scheveningen and Greek side Panathinaikos 3-1, but suffered a 2-1 defeat at the hands of GOES, lost 3-0 against Oss, and ended on the wrong end of 2-0 scorelines against Dordrecht and Aris. This disappointing pre-season, coupled with the loss of a key player and a lack of players coming into the club has produced a negative atmosphere around the club and its fans.

However, the likes of Abdenasser El Khayati, who both scored and assisted on a regular basis for Den Haag last season, remain at the club and that can only be a good thing. Den Haag have a great opportunity to start the season with a win on Sunday as they have a good record against Emmen and remain unbeaten against their guests in the last eight meetings (5 wins, 3 draws).

Emmen beat Sparta Rotterdam in the play-off final to earn promotion to the top flight of Dutch football for the first time in their history, despite only finishing seventh in the Eerste Divisie last season. Emmen are a small, but old, club with a 92-year history and a stadium that holds a capacity of just 8,600.

There is only one non-Dutch player in the Emmen squad this season, with Belgian midfielder Jason Bourdouxhe joining on a free transfer from Helmond Sport this summer. No fees have been paid or received by Emmen in this transfer window, but eight players have arrived on free transfers and one has come in on-loan. Wouter Marinus and Caner Cavlan both offer Emmen some much needed Eredivisie experience and there other signings are all young and hungry to prove themselves at this level.

Nine players left Emmen at the end of their contracts, none of whom were offered new ones by the club as they try to establish themselves as a top flight club for the foreseeable future. Pre-season couldn’t have gone much better for the newly promoted side, with just one defeat, one draw, and four draws from their last six matches. Twente and Groningen were both beaten by Emmen, and that will give them confidence heading into the new season, while even a narrow defeat to Heracles suggests Emmen are on the same level as some of their Eredivisie rivals.

We’re confident that both teams will score in this game and that over 2.5 goals will be produced. We’re expecting an open, end to end game and have backed Emmen to pick up a shock 2-1 win come the final whistle. Both teams have scored in three of Den Haag’s and three of Emmen’s last six matches, while over 2.5 goals have been scored in four of Den Haag’s and four of Emmen’s last six matches.