Eredivisie Football, new opportunities for betting enthusiasts
On Friday, season 22/23 premier league soccer starts. A new season, with new opportunities. It's always fun to make an occasional bet on whole matches or parts. And despite the apparent hegemony of Ajax, there are more contenders for the title.
We already wrote about the first seven matches tactics to estimate the odds. And about the probability calculation with the poison distribution. Which is easier than the binomial distribution, which requires more game events, for example, cricket satta.
Ultimately, however, it comes down to one's own knowledge, insight and feeling when we talk about betting on soccer. And if we want to bet well on lack of club love. Because with emotional betting you only help your fellow bettors.
New season of premier league soccer
We look at the various teams at the beginning of the season. There is of course a lot to say about that, much more than we can discuss here. Especially since the differences are not as big as is often thought. Financially, however, there are some differences to note. Ajax is in the list of 20 most valuable clubs and rakes in between 150 and 200 million euros annually.
Ajax has the advantage that there is peace in the club. The same trainer, a few new players and a stable board. That is completely different at Feyenoord. Another new coach, the 'star player' sold and unrest in the board, where of course in soccer everyone is interfering. At PSV the question is whether they have found their feet, after a season of searching. And FC Utrecht could also break through, if the mentality problem that always seems to hover around the players on the pitch is finally shaken off.
Ajax
Most striking is the transfer of Feyenoord star Steven Berghuis to Ajax. He wants to shine a few more times during European soccer and that chance is greatest from Amsterdam. Also noteworthy are the goalkeepers at age. For goalkeepers not necessarily unusual. But Ajax has two and with Pasveer, who was taken over from Vitesse, immediately the oldest footballer in the Eredivisie soccer. For the 25-year-old suspended goalkeeper Onana it is still the question whether he will leave the club.
Otherwise, little exciting happened in the transition of the soccer season. Captain Dusan Tadic remains the stable factor. With around him the experienced stars Daley Blind, Sebastien Haller and Nicolás Tagliafico and the young players Gravenberch, Timber and Antony. Important to the success is also the ambitious coach Erik Ten Hag. He wants to shine with his team also once on the European stage.
PSV
It will be the second season of coach Roger Schmidt and German international Mario Götze. The team is stable, even though the coach still seems to be tinkering with a system. The much scoring striker Donyell Malen has admittedly been sold. But the 34-year-old striker Eran Zahavi also appears to be able to score well. He showed that in the Champions League qualifiers. The young wingers Cody Gakpo and Noni Madueke assist him, while they themselves will also cash in on goal opportunities.
In midfield, attacking midfielder Mario Götze and captain Marco van Ginkel play an important role. Davy Pröpper returned to PSV after four years of English soccer, where he previously played five seasons. Most of the purchases PSV made this summer were to strengthen the defense.
PSV showed themselves immediately at the beginning of the season. It won the Johan Cruijff cup by beating Ajax 0-4 in Amsterdam. If they can hold on to the form of last season, the team will finish high again this year. Half the points would then seem to be in anyway; in the past five years they have lost only two home games.
AZ
AZ finished third in the previous season. The team left a strong impression. However, it remains to be seen whether they can hold on to that. Some important players already left the Zaanstreek, like Calvin Stengs, Marco Bizot and striker Myron Boadu. For some other players, Teun Koopmeiners and Owen Wijndal, a possible departure is still unclear. What is certain is that Wijndal will miss the start of the season due to injury.
AZ also struck in the transfer market, as last season's rented Bruno Martins-Indi was permanently acquired from Stoke City. AZ also bought 22-year-old striker Vangelis Pavlidis, from Willem II. At the back, the also 22-year-old Sam Beukema should strengthen the defense. In August, the departure of Jonas Svensson was also met with the arrival of another Norwegian. Aslak Fonn Witry was acquired from the Swedish Djurgårdens IF.
It seems to be an uncertain season for AZ, which is clearly in a transitional phase. Young players from the own training are moving up to the highest team. They replace players sold in recent years, and have to prove themselves immediately. Some players to watch out for are Ernest Poku (17), Peer Koopmeiners (21), Thijs Oosting (21) and Mohamed Taabouni (19).
Vitesse
Looking back at the past ten years of Vitesse, you see a team that provides surprises every time. This year could very well be a year in which the Arnhem team climbs the highest podium. Vitesse took over the young striker Nikolai Baden Frederiksen from Juventus. And from young Vitesse came striker Enrico Hernández to the first team.
But we spoke of surprises. It is therefore the question what the team of coach Thomas Letsch has in store for us. In his second year at Vitesse, Letsch seems to want to stick to his 5-3-2 system with two strikers. It can produce attractive soccer with lots of goals.
However, some of the surprises at Vitesse come from sudden loss of character. In the past, players quickly became frustrated when the opponent misjudged the situation. If Vitesse can keep their heads above water this season, they have a good chance of finishing in the top three.
Feyenoord
Feyenoord have been struggling for years. A lot has been happening both on and off the pitch. And it doesn't always come out well and has a visible influence on the performance on the pitch. Yet Feyenoord still managed to finish in the top seven.
This season a new coach will try to get the team with its golden past back on track. Arno Slot is enthusiastic and he definitely sees opportunities. Partly because players like Justin Bijlow, Marcos Senesi and Lutsharel Geertruida have stayed on. They and their teammates will have to get used to the new style of play. Coach Slot likes to play attacking soccer. That makes the game more attractive to the many regular Feyenoord fans.
Former AZ player Guus Til joins Feyenoord after two years abroad. Feyenoord bought Austrian Gernot Trauner for the defense. He proved to be an immediate asset in the preparations for the 2021/2022 Eredivisie. In addition, Alireza Jahanbakhsh was acquired from Brighton & Hove Albion. The Iranian was sold for 18 million euros by AZ to the English club a few years ago.
FC Utrecht
FC Utrecht has a strong team with talented players on the pitch every season. The potential to finish high is always present. There is a continuous place in the top seven. But the highest place(s) has never been achieved. Or to put it differently, the promise of potential is not being fulfilled. You would almost think that a curse has been pronounced over the club.
On their way to Eredivisie soccer season 21/22 eleven predominantly older players left Stadion Galgenwaard. Twelve players with an average age of 21 years replaced them, including three from the club's own Jong Utrecht. There is a team with talent, like every year.
It's up to René Hake in his second season as head coach to dispel the curse. Whether he will succeed this year is the question. In that respect FC Utrecht can be as surprising as Vitesse. That makes a sporting gamble all the more fun. The odds can just turn and confound the bookies' established predictions. With perhaps also unexpected profits for the bettor who dares to take a risk. For example, on 3 October at the Ajax - FC Utrecht match, when sports betting also became legal in the Netherlands.