[Sheva]

Made two big bets for this weekend. I took this games early in order to get a nice price on them:

FC Twente vs FC Utrecht -0.5 and -1 @ 1.92 (4)

FC Twente was able this summer to keep most of their squad together. They lost Bakircoglu to Ajax and Aissatti went back to PSV. In exchange, they acquired Denneboom from NEC and Huysegems from Feyenoord. Last week they got their first win at Excelsior (0-2). N'Kufo scored two goals and Twente had numerous chances to make it more than 2. FC Utrecht had a tough opener at home against Feyenoord. They looked good until the 0-1 was scored by a error of the goalkeeper. After that they were not able to do anything special. They lack a real goalscorer at the moment. FC Twente under Rutte has developed itself to a good football team. They have the ability to outplay an opponent especially at home. The last two times these two teams met Twente won 3-0. Twente at home is very hard to beat. Last year they managed a 13-3-1 record in which they scored 47 goals and conceded only 15. Only Ajax was able to beat FC Twente while Twente got the better of AZ, PSV and Feyenoord.

I can see only one possible outcome in this game and that is a win for FC Twente. I wouldn't be suprised if this win will be with more than 1 goal difference.

Vitesse vs AZ -0.5 @ 1.88 (2)

AZ (with Ajax) was the best away team last season winning 13 of 17 games. They however lost the last crucial game against a very small club to just miss catching the title. They are out for revenge this year. They looked very sharp against VVV Venlo in the seasonopener which they won 4-0. It's really a joy to watch AZ play because they play very attacking football and show a lot of skill and combination play. Vitesse was lucky to get a victory in Rotterdam where they beat Sparta 1-2. They never seemed to be in the match untill the last 15 minutes where they scored 2 goals. Sparta should have scored more than once before that. Vitesse lost their main goalscorer to PSV (Lazovic) and didn't got a good player in return. They seem to be weaker than last year. AZ has won 4 times in a row in Arnhem and have demolished them the last three times (0-3, 1-5, 0-3). It is very likely that the difference in player quality will show tommorow night. AZ will win easily in my opinion.

[Sheva]

Opinions on other games:

Roda JC vs Heracles Almelo: game to stay away from. Roda JC have got a lot of injuries in their front line and didn't look good in their opening game. Heracles nearly drew against PSV. Under normal circumstances this would be a easy win for Roda JC but not sure if they will win today. Only interesting thing is the under in this game.

PSV vs NEC: easy win here for PSV but not good value in my opinion.

VVV Venlo vs Excelsior: could go either way. If i had to make a choice i would say VVV Venlo because they play at home but not a game i fancy betting on.

Willem II vs Sparta Rotterdam: Willem II suprisingly got a point at Heerenveen. They have got their main striker back from a long injury. Sparta deserved at least a point against Vitesse. Last two times these two met ended in a goalless draw. Don't see that happening this time. Could go either way so probably will end in a draw.

Ajax vs Heerenveen: Ajax won by a very large margin last week (1-8). They will have a much tougher opponent in Heerenveen. They tend to struggle against Heerenveen the last three season. They got only 1 point out of those encounters. Depending on the fact that Alves is match fit i might have a go at the +1, +1.5 handicap. If Ajax wins it will not be by a very large margin. They got the Champions league qualifier ahead of them next Wednesday in which they have to make up for a home loss against Slavia Prague. Coach Ten Cate allready said Gabri won't play because he has to be 100% for the match in Prague. That says a lot about which Ajax have their attention on at the moment.

FC Groningen vs De Graafschap: Groningen will win this. Only question is how much. De Graafschap will be eager to proof that they belong on this level but Groningen will have the better of them 9 out of 10 times at home. Good game for a double maybe.

Feyenoord vs NAC Breda: first home game for Feyenoord this season with all the new players. They will be a little nervy for that i think. I see them struggle against NAC Breda but in the end they should get the win over the line.

[Sheva]

Adding:

Ajax Amsterdam vs SC Heerenveen +1 and +1,5 @ 2.1(1/2)

and

Ajax Amsterdam vs SC Heerenveen Under 3 goals @ 2.13 (1/2)

I think this match will be a lot closer than the bookies see it. If Heerenveen survives the first storm of Ajax i see SC Heerenveen getting confidence on the defense. They will be able to hold on to 0-0 till halftime. Alves won't start for Heerenveen. I still think they can maybe capitalize on some Ajax mistakes and score a goal on the break.