Two teams unable to qualify for next season's Conference League meet at Van Roystadion on Saturday evening as Dender play host to Mechelen in their final fixture in the Belgian Pro League European playoffs.
A seven-goal thriller was played out the last time that these two teams squared off on April 4 when Mechelen came out on top by a 5-2 scoreline on home soil.
Match preview
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Competing in their first Belgian top-flight campaign since 2009, Dender narrowly avoided relegation during the regular season as they finished 12th and just above the bottom four on goal difference, despite failing to win any of their final five matches.
Vincent Euvrard's side have since experienced an inconsistent spell in the playoffs, winning, drawing and losing three of their nine fixtures as 4-1 and 4-2 away defeats to the top-two sides Charleroi and Westerlo were followed by a thumping 5-0 home win over Leuven and a goalless draw at Standard Liege last weekend.
Sitting fourth in the six-team standings, Dender will climb up to third place if they can beat Mechelen, who currently sit two points above them. However, defeat in Saturday's contest could see them slip below both Leuven and Standard Liege if they were to prevail in their final-day fixtures.
Dender will fancy their chances of success at Van Roystadion as they have accumulated 10 points across their last four home matches, although they have never beaten Mechelen in 11 previous attempts across all competitions.
Indeed, Mechelen has won nine and draw two against Dender and have scored two or more goals in each of their last eight encounters, netting 25 goals in total.
The Yellow Reds, who ended the regular season in eighth spot, have not been able to mount a serious challenge for the top playoff position in the six-team standings, as they have posted two wins, five draws and two defeats from nine matches.
Frederik Vanderbiest's side have been forced to settle for a share of the spoils in three of their last four fixtures, including last weekend's 1-1 draw with table-toppers Charleroi in which Lion Lauberbach scored a 78th-minute equaliser to rescue a point and extend their unbeaten run to four games.
Mechelen are unable to match last season's second-placed finish in the playoffs and will have to settle for third if they manage to avoid defeat on Saturday before attempting to push for a top-six finish in the 2025-26 regular campaign.
Team News
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Dender goalkeeper Michael Verrips has missed the last two games with an abdominal injury and is set to remain sidelined along with Joedrick Pupe, Noah Mbamba, Tom Holmes, Ragnar Oratmangoen and Michael Lallemand.
Guillaume Dietsch should continue between the sticks in Verrips's absence, while forwards Aurelien Scheidler, Bruny Nsimba and Mohamed Berte, who have all scored a team-high nine goals this term, will be battling for a start up front.
As for Mechelen, Keano Vanrafelghem and Bas Van den Eynden are both doubtful having missed the last two games with minor knocks, while Zinho Vanheusden (hernia) and Ahmed Touba (hamstring) both remain in the treatment room.
Top scorer Benito Raman, who has 15 goals to his name this season, is likely to lead the line once again, but he faces competition from Lauberbach who netted his eighth goal of the campaign as a substitute last time out and could be rewarded with a start this time around.
Dender possible starting lineup:
Dietsch; Hrncar, Ruyssen, Goncalves, Masangu, Sylla; Viltard, Rodes; Kvet; Berte, Nsimba
Mechelen possible starting lineup:
De Wolf; Belghali, Welsh, Raemaekers, Zekri; Schoofs, Hammar, Hairemans; Antonio, Lauberbach, Storm
We say: Dender 1-2 Mechelen
There is little to separate these two teams who are merely playing for pride on Saturday, but Mechelen will be regarded as the favourites considering their recent form and unbeaten record against Dender. A narrow away victory could be on the cards this time around.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Oliver Thomas
