FC Den Bosch (home)
- FC Den Bosch face Almere City in one of the more intriguing matches in Saturday's Eerste Divisie 2026-2027 opening round of games, which is a fresh start for both clubs as they begin the new season on 0 points.
- Schreuder's team have had an up and down summer with a 3-1 win over Quick Boys, a 0-0 draw with FC Eindhoven and a 1-2 defeat to Lusail City the results of their last three tune-up games.
Almere City (away)
- Almere City are the favorites to win, and we think the bookies have got this right, but the 2.2 odds on the visitors looks a little low, nonetheless, for a trip to Stadion De Vliert.
- Anoush Dastgir's Almerians have had a similar summer with an equal mix of results, following a 1-3 friendly defeat to FC Groningen with a 2-2 draw at home to TOP Oss and a 2-1 win over FC Volendam.
- City will set the tempo with the ball and their aggressive pressing game while Den Bosch are set up to stay compact and hit on the break through their two forwards.
Head-to-Head
The rivalry has swung both ways, but there has been no real trend with Almere City winning 3-0 in the 2026 Eerste Divisie play-offs while Den Bosch got the better of that series 2-1 in the first leg and also secured a 5-2 home win in 2025.
Key Players
- Ferdy Druijf will be a classic penalty box target for City while Kévin Monzialo remains Den Bosch's main finisher after his double figure scoring campaign.
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Byron Burgering adds some extra spice to this game as he left Den Bosch during the summer to join Almere, where he has already chipped in with goals and assists in the final games and in preseason.
- Ferdy Druijf
- Kévin Monzialo
- Byron Burgering
Betting Insights
- Almere City are the 2.2 favorites, should win but Den Bosch are 2.75 with the draw priced at 3.9.
- There will be no hanging back for either of these clubs on Saturday, so the goals markets are likely to be favourable and both Over 2.5 (at 1.4) and Both Teams to Score - Yes (at 1.35) look good bets.
Prediction
Almere are favored and should win here, but the head-to-head record is too mixed to suggest a clear winner and this has the feel of a real dog fight, so 1-1 in the exact score market is definitely a live possibility on a warm, sunny day at De Vliert.
