AZ Alkmaar vs Twente

There will be a playoff final for the Eredivisie European competition at AFAS Stadion on Sunday and the match between AZ Alkmaar and FC Twente will decide who wins the spot in the Europa Conference League.

Over the weekend, the home team wrapped up the Cardiff City Stadium campaign in fifth place, with 57 points earned in their 34 matches, while the guests finished the season just three points below this Sunday's opponents.

Last season, AZ Alkmaar achieved three top four finishes, but they could not match that performance this time, sitting behind Utrecht on fourteen wins, eighteen draws and eighteen losses.

Yet, De Kaasboeren remain alive in the fight for European football, provided they win their next game against Twente, who they beat both home and away when the league was running.

Maarten Martens’s team is approaching this match full of confidence due to their strong finish to the season, as they ended up winning three out of their four last games, including the 3-2 win over their next competitors and again drawing 1-1 on the last game day.

A hat-trick by Mexx Meerdink and a later goal by Alexandre Penetra gave AZ a 4-1 lead against Heerenveen in the semi-final of the European competition playoffs.

In the last four matches at AFAS Stadion, the hosts haven’t lost and have suffered only a couple of defeats this year at home, to Sparta Rotterdam and Feyenoord.

This season, Twente got eliminated from Europa League by Bodo/Glimt in the intermediate round and now need to end their three-game losing streak to AZ to qualify for Europe next term.

The Tukkers finished the regular season on a shaky note, losing three of their last five matches—including consecutive defeats to De Kaasboeren and Ajax in their final two games. These setbacks cost them a top-five spot in the league standings.

Their European playoff semi-final seemed destined for disappointment when they went down to 10 men and fell 2-1 behind against NEC. However, Sem Steijn’s 74th-minute equalizer and Younes Taha’s extra-time winner completed a dramatic comeback, keeping their continental hopes alive.

Despite the morale-boosting victory, the Tukkers’ away form remains a major concern. Since December, they’ve managed just one win in their last 10 league matches on the road—a worrying trend as they head into this crucial fixture.