The club started the season in remarkable form, losing just one of their opening 11 games, which placed them alongside title contenders Feyenoord, Ajax and PSV Eindhoven in the top four. They managed to maintain their form up until the New Year, but luck hasn’t been on their side so far in 2017.
Prior to this weekend, they had won just three of the 14 matches that they had played this year, which left them in eighth place and clinging on to one of the spots in the Europa League play-offs.
Yet, they stepped up on Friday and produced a result to grab a vital three points. While they only managed a 1-0 win over mid-table side Willem II, the victory maintained their three point lead over ninth placed Heracles Almelo, who currently sit just three points behind them.
Had in-form winger Sam Larsson failed to score just before the half-time break, Heerenveen’s lead would stand at just one point heading into the penultimate game of the season. Jurgen Streppel will be hopeful that the Swede can continue to provide, having scored two and assisted three in his last four matches.
With three points to spare and a positive goal difference of +4 compared to Heracles -4, all Streppel’s side must do to secure their spot is produce one more victory in their final two matches.
Their first test will come against a PEC Zwolle side that they claimed a narrow 1-0 triumph over back in August. Yet, it will be a much tougher task at the MAC³PARK Stadion, given that Heerenveen have failed to gain a single point on the road since December. Their last win away from home came against Go Ahead Eagles on December 3rd, and they have since lost eight consecutive away games. Yet, given that Zwolle have failed to claim a win in their last five Eredivisie matches, Heerenveen will certainly fancy their chances.
If not, they will have to get the job done at home against NEC Nijmegen in their final match of the season. Given that their opposition have lost all but one of their last 13 matches, three points are likely on the cards for Heerenveen. If not, they will be relying on league leaders Feyenoord to bring an end to Heracles Europa League hopes on the final day of the season.
It’s likely to be a nervy few weeks for Streppel’s struggling side. Yet, the fixture list has provided them with the perfect opportunity to get the job done. Given their spectacular form in the first half of the campaign, finishing eighth will undoubtedly be disappointing, but they must focus on getting the job done, rather than what could have been, as failing to secure a play-off spot at this stage would be nothing short of failure.