Difficult trial for Alkmaar
Also in the Dutch Eredivisie the next match day will be opened next Friday. It comes right to the start of round 19 to the duel of two teams, which are currently in the top 6 of the league. Meant are the FC Ultrecht and AZ Alkmaar, both fighting for the international starting places. The kick-off is on 19 January at 20:00 clock.

Current form FC Ultrecht
FC Ultrecht is fighting for the second half of the season with a good base for the coming weeks. The last games before the end of the first round were only partially successful. On the last matchday before the winter break you had to surprise the former table 16. beaten from Breda, lost 1: 3. This has succeeded in the last four games only more than a full success, this even in an away game in the 1-0 against Venlo. In general, we do not see the home advantage in the case of the table sixth very pronounced. Because: Ultrecht bribed much more in the season so far by consistency and balance. At home and away, they have been able to celebrate 4 full successes, but have won three out of the last 4 away games. In home games, the balance of recent weeks and months does not look so rosy. Of the recent 3 encounters in front of their own audience, only one could win, but remained unbeaten in all these games and got at least 5 points. In general, they lost to their own audience this season only one game, this on Matchday 6 against PSV Eindhoven. It was, however, by far the highest defeat of the season, which had to accept the sixth, but drew at the same time with 1: 7 the short straw. The goal scores in the comparison between home and away matches also do not allow a clear forecast for Friday: So Ultrecht has scored 14 goals in 7 games and thus holds with a cut of exactly two goals per game, in the last two home games, this value, however not reached. That Ultrecht will also be successful against a top 3 team like Alkmaar at least one goal, we think is absolutely probable. Because: In the last 8 matches, the team of coach Matthew Willock has always met at least once. Accordingly, we also see the much bigger problems in the defensive sector. Ultrecht has suffered 28 goals so far and is the weakest among the current top-8 in the Dutch Eredivisie. Important therefore, that on Friday, according to our information on the defensive, only “Six” Anouar Kali will fail. Things are different here in the offensive area: Bilal Chikkh, Jean-Christophe Bahebeck and Simon Makeinok will be out of three alternatives on the center forward position. Nevertheless, with Labyad (7 goals) and Dessers (6 goals) are the two most accurate players of the table sixth available.

Current form AZ Alkmaar
For Alkmaar it runs in the season so far absolutely as desired. So much so that you can currently even dream of a Champions League place. For: An analysis of the current stand shows Alkmaar in third place, the gap to second in the standings is currently only three points. However, the “big points” against Ultrecht would be just as important, if only because of the fact that it could put pressure on the competition, which is only starting on Saturday. Strong: Alkmaar have lost just one of the last 11 games, this with Ajax Amsterdam against an absolute top club. Even in this match Alkmaar kept up well, narrowly losing 1: 2. Important: After this bankruptcy, they recovered quickly and celebrated at the conclusion of the first round a sovereign victory against Heerenveen (3: 1). Before the defeat against Amsterdam they won 1-1 against Zwolle and successes against Heracles (5-0), Venlo (2-0) and Twente Enschede (2-0). These results also show how stable Alkmaar has been in terms of results and, above all, on the defensive in recent weeks and months. Of the 11 games mentioned, the third placed in the table won no less than 8, while remaining 5 times completely without conceding. Accordingly, we see defensively clear advantages compared to the Friday opponent. Apropos: Here, the direct duel should also be included in this analysis. Alkmaar can rely on good balance sheets, because you have lost only one of the last 7 games against Ultrecht after regular time. The first clash of the season 2017/2018 could be confidently 3: 0 in front of their own audience. Interesting for all fans of goal bets: In the last 9 direct duels there were always more than 3.5 hits, so a bet bet in the form of an over / under bet for Friday would certainly be a lucrative alternative. Important: Coach John van den Brom will be able to call on almost all his regulars on Friday. Currently, according to our information, only Calvin Stengs and Mario Vejinovic are out, but of which only the latter belongs to the extended trunk of the third in the table. Strong: Alkmaar belongs to almost all important statistics (possession of the ball, shots per game etc.) to the top 5 of the league. The only slight weakness we recognized in recent weeks at high balls, therefore, standards are required for increased awareness.

Forecast and Bet Tip
A match in which we think pretty much anything can happen. We see Alkmaar slightly in the advantage overall, but still would not make a three-way bet or bet on a winner. Rather, we expect both teams to play off their strengths on offense and score at least one goal. Therefore: Both teams score.