Added edge to fervent fixture

By Berend Scholten

AFC Ajax and Feyenoord play out their 97th Eredivisie encounter on Sunday with both teams desperate for victory at the Amsterdam ArenA to stay in touch with leaders PSV Eindhoven.

Disappointing start
Ajax have made a disappointing start to the season, and lie fourth, eleven points behind unbeaten PSV after they defeated Willem II 1-0 on Saturday. Feyenoord are second, seven points adrift, and equally keen not to slip any further.

Coaches renew rivalry
The match is given added spice by the personalities at the helm of either club, Ajax coach Ronald Koeman and Feyenoord chief Ruud Gullit. The two met several times as players for their respective teams in the 1980s - before becoming club-mates at PSV. Koeman, though, is focusing on the present.

Added pressure
"For this fixture there is always a lot of pressure," said Koeman, who ended his career at Feyenoord. "But for us, now is the time that we can either gain a lot of goodwill, or lose a lot of goodwill. We can take an important step forward if we get a good result on Sunday." Ajax captain Tomáš Galásek returns from a back problem, but defender John O'Brien is out again after tearing a hamstring.

Suspended duo
Gullit, never a player for Ajax despite being born in Amsterdam, is without suspended midfielder Pascal Bosschaart and defender Chong-Gug Song. Feyenoord boast the league's two leading scorers, Salomon Kalou and Dirk Kuijt, with nine goals apiece, but Gullit is looking for more maturity from his side after a 4-1 loss to AZ Alkmaar a fortnight ago followed an earlier 3-0 home defeat by FC Utrecht.

'Sheer carelessness'
"Due to sheer carelessness we often give unnecessary goals away," Gullit said. "And then it takes a lot of strength to get back from that. We also have to be more careful with our goal chances - especially in the opening period of a match we must score more easily."

Psychological approach
He added: "In any game you have to believe that you are better than the opposition - that you are willing and able to win. Whether you really are better is another matter, depending on many factors, but that feeling has to be there. This Sunday in the ArenA is no different."