SC Cambuur host AZ Alkmaar at the Cambuur Stadion on 18 October 2026 with Cambuur sitting 12th on eight points from eight matches and AZ third on 19, looking to bounce back from their first defeat of the season. That loss, a 0-2 reverse at Feyenoord, is the one blemish on an otherwise impressive early campaign for the visitors and Cambuur, riding a four match unbeaten run, will be hoping the hosts' form counts for something here.
Johan Plat and Lee-Roy Echteld don't have much history against each other, Plat having taken charge on 1 July 2026 after Henk de Jong stepped aside and Echteld appointed on 18 January 2026 following Maarten Martens' sacking. Neither has been in the job long enough for the head-to-head to mean anything.
Cambuur come into this on the back of a 1-0 win at PEC Zwolle on 11 October 2026, with Nicolas Binder's 84th minute goal sealing their fourth unbeaten match in a row. AZ, by contrast, were beaten 0-2 at Feyenoord on 10 October despite posting the better numbers across the season so far: 18 goals scored and only eight conceded in eight league outings.
Cambuur are missing Jamal Amofa, whose season is over after Achilles tendon surgery, he was their captain and defensive organiser. AZ, meanwhile, are without Stije Resink (cruciate ligament, out until around January 2027), Kees Smit and Jizz Hornkamp.
Cambuur's approach tends to leave space behind the full backs and that structural habit becomes a more acute problem when the man responsible for organising the defence is missing altogether. AZ's ability to keep the ball in tight spaces should give them control of the game's rhythm and, with it, control of which parts of Cambuur's backline they want to target.
The central contest is Ro-Zangelo Daal and Mexx Meerdink against a Cambuur backline already short of its leader. Daal has four goals this season and Meerdink offers a different threat, running in behind a back four that will be scrambling to hold its shape without Amofa's direction. Calvin Stengs should find plenty of space between Cambuur's lines with Amofa gone and Rafik el Arguioui, though Cambuur's most creative option, will find getting on the ball difficult against AZ's compact double pivot.
AZ will look to control the ball in Cambuur's half and force mistakes and if Cambuur try to press high there is no one to recover if that press is beaten. If AZ score first, as seems likely given the head-to-head record (three wins from the last four meetings, the most recent a 2-1 AZ victory in February 2023), Cambuur will have to push forward and expose the space behind their backline, which is precisely where AZ cause damage.
AZ's depth at every position, even with three absentees, is beyond what Cambuur's current squad can match. Daal and Meerdink are both likely to score and Cambuur, though capable of creating something through Binder and el Arguioui, are conceding freely without Amofa and face a side specifically equipped to take advantage of that. AZ to win 4-0.
Ryan Baldi
Football Writer
Ryan Baldi is a professional football writer with years of experience and has been featured by respected outlets such as the BBC, The Guardian, Sky Sports, DAZN, FourFourTwo, ESPN, Yahoo Sport and Football365. He has also written several books including Arsène Who?.
