PSV vs Willem II – News and Probable Lineups

Third in the Eredivisie, PSV Eindhoven welcomes last-placed Willem II for a matchup at the Philips Stadion this Saturday.

The current champions find themselves four points behind the unbeaten leaders Feyenoord following a 1-1 draw last Sunday, while Willem II remains without a league triumph after ten fixtures and is on their third head coach in just four games.

Match overview

The reigning champions are currently third in the Eredivisie standings with 20 points from ten matches, just ahead of AZ and FC Twente on goal difference. Their record includes six victories, two draws, and two defeats, with a total of 28 goals scored and 13 conceded.

Peter Bosz’s squad faced a 2-1 defeat against newly promoted ADO Den Haag on October 17, with Sven Mijnans netting the opener before he received a second yellow card and was sent off before the break, while Matej Sin scored the decisive goal in the 93rd minute.

Just three days later, the Boeren secured a 1-0 victory at FC Porto, courtesy of Guus Til’s goal in the 57th minute. This marked their first victory in the group stage of the Champions League after drawing 1-1 with Shakhtar Donetsk and succumbing to a 1-0 loss at RB Leipzig.

Til opened the scoring for PSV against Feyenoord in the 21st minute following a kept-alive cross by Lutsharel Geertruida, but Anis Hadj Moussa equalized in the 54th minute.

Geertruida saw a goal in the 73rd minute disallowed for offside involving Ivan Perisic in the buildup, and Armando Obispo had a header that struck the outside of the post before the halftime whistle, backing up Bosz’s assertion that PSV deserved to come away with the win.

With six league goals to his name, Til has been effective, while Mijnans has contributed five. However, the Eindhovens Dagblad highlights concerns regarding the forward line, suggesting that Perisic and Ruben van Bommel are expected to make greater contributions.

On February 8, 2025, PSV were also held to a 1-1 draw at home by Willem II, with Noa Lang’s strike in the 62nd minute equaled by Mickael Tirpan in the 83rd minute.

Willem II currently sits at the bottom of the table with just two points from ten matches, having not secured a single win, drawn twice, and suffered eight defeats, resulting in a goal difference of -22 from 10 goals scored and 32 conceded.

The 6-1 loss to fellow newly promoted side Cambuur on October 24 marked Willem II’s heaviest away loss in Eredivisie history, with Nicolas Binder scoring twice and the visitors finding themselves 3-0 down within the first 18 minutes.

That game followed a 3-2 loss at Sparta Rotterdam on October 17, where Tonny Vilhena and Uriel van Aalst found the net, and a 3-1 defeat to FC Utrecht on October 11.

John Stegeman was dismissed on Tuesday, October 20, as technical director Freek Heerkens expressed a lack of optimism about improvement, causing assistant Pascal Diender to leave alongside him.

Adrie Koster, a 71-year-old technical advisor at the club, then took charge for a brief period before his side was booed off the pitch at halftime against Cambuur while trailing 3-0.

Koster, however, oversaw Willem II’s first victory of the season, a 4-3 triumph in the cup against second-tier Helmond Sport on Tuesday, October 27, featuring an overhead kick from Devin Haen and the dismissal of substitute Jaden Slory when the score was 4-2.

Jurgen Streppel, aged 57, was appointed as head coach on Wednesday, October 28, taking charge until the end of the season. Streppel returns to a club he previously led from 2011 to 2016, having been sacked by Cypriot second-tier club Akritas Chlorakas, with the aim of survival stated upon his return.

Willem II last achieved victory over PSV in Tilburg on September 25, 2021 (2-1), and have managed just one point in the three encounters since.

Team News

Jerdy Schouten continues to recover from a severe knee injury sustained against FC Utrecht on April 4, which is expected to sideline him for about nine months. Alassane Plea is also ruled out for the remainder of the calendar year.

Paul Wanner and Adamo Nagalo are unavailable, striker Sam Lammers trained with Jong PSV last week but wasn’t deemed fit enough for the squad against Feyenoord, while Sami Ouaissa, a €9m signing from NEC, also missed a reserve match due to fitness issues and will require a new medical assessment.

Ricardo Pepi has returned to training but may not yet be fit for the game on Saturday. Meanwhile, Kiliann Sildillia, who has been absent since late August until the Porto match, is also still uncertain.

Mijnans is available again following a one-match suspension against Feyenoord, providing Bosz with a second central option alongside Til, who had to leave the ADO match in the 39th minute after a fall but managed to score in Porto.

After a prolonged absence due to a cruciate ligament injury, Van Bommel has returned and started against Feyenoord, having been left out of the squad for the ADO and Porto fixtures.

Willem II were missing Amine Lachkar due to a groin injury and he hasn’t featured since July, as well as Justin Hoogma, who has a knee issue, for the Cambuur match.

Slory, currently on loan from Feyenoord, is expected to miss the encounter in Eindhoven due to his red card from a significant challenge at Helmond.

Vilhena has been on the score sheet at Sparta and again versus Helmond, while Haen’s overhead kick stood out in the cup victory.

PSV Eindhoven probable starting XI:

Kovar; Dest, Obispo, Geertruida, Kostic; Mauro Junior, Sano; Perisic, Til, Van Bommel; Mijnans

Willem II probable starting XI:

Didillon-Hodl; To the West, Stem, Dekker, Tjoe-A-On; Twigt, Vilhena; Zarrouk, Van Aalst, Van Crooij; Where

PSV averages 2.8 goals per match, while Willem II concedes 3.2. Given that Willem II has conceded 12 goals in their last three league appearances, a win for PSV by a clear three-goal margin seems plausible.

With Streppel appointed late on Wednesday night, he has less than three days for preparation, making it unlikely that the defensive issues seen against Cambuur, where they fell behind 3-0 in just 18 minutes, will be resolved by Saturday.

PSV’s next fixture is against Club Brugge in the Champions League on Wednesday, November 4, so Bosz might consider rotating his squad. However, Esmir Bajraktarevic, Mikkel Bro Hansen, and Dennis Man all took part against Feyenoord and bolster his options against a team yet to secure a league victory.