Cambuur – Breda
Netherlands – Eerste divisie, day 10.
Sunday 15/10/23, 16:45 CET
It’s thunderstorm in Leeuwarden. After three defeats in a row, culminated in a resounding 5-2 at Dordrecht’s, the board decided to sack mister Sjors Ultee. In his place, Henk de Jong has been appointed: a “safe used” solution, considering that the new head coach has trained the Frisians for almost 10 years. He is still under contract with the club and is widely beloved by the supporters. His first task is to restore an overall stability to a team which is all but consistent: after 11 games, Cambuur register the second-best attack and the second-worst defense of the league (21 goals scored and as many conceded, 12 of which just in the last three weeks). Their 11th place in the table is far from the expectations of a club just relegated from Eredivisie, and with the declared goal to promptly take it back. In the long term, however, their qualitative dominance is expected to emerge: players such as van der Water, Uldrikis and Breij are simply too good for the Eerste divisie’s standards. Not to mention Milan Smit, top-scorer of the league with 7.
Breda can finally breath again: the last-minute victory against Groningen (3-2) marks a turning point for their complicate start of the season. It arrives after 4 games without other wins and three different coaches. The new one, Jean Paul van Gastel, at least reactivated a sense of pride in the ranks of a suffering team. Now he calls for more: Breda are much better than what the standings say today (14th place) and are expected to climb back the Eerste divisie’s hierarchies. The offensive midfielder Dominik Janosek (4 goals and 2 assists so far) is the fine brain of the squad, which finally restarted to play some fierce football. If they manage to strengthen their tactical organization, the full recovery may be around the corner. Also because most of the injured players are becoming available again.
The last Cambuur-Breda disputed in Leeuwarden – dated 2021 – was a vibrant 3-2 in favor of the home team. On Sunday, it is likely to experience another intense, high-scoring match with many opportunities to hit the back of the net on both sides: Cambuur have lately become a goal-fest guarantee (19 in total, in the last three games); while for six times in a row, both Breda and each opponent they faced have scored at least once. Enjoy the show.