PEC Zwolle are in a rut. The side lost at the weekend to newly promoted Cambuur and sit 16th in the Eredivisie table. The home defeat means that PEC Zwolle have lost five games in a row and have not won since the 22nd of August. As a result, head coach Henry van der Vegt has been coming under intense pressure. The side have only scored six goals in their eight games so far, while conceding 21 at the other end, making PEC Zwolle the third worst defence in the Eredivisie.
However, club captain Ryan Thomas has come to the defence of his head coach. The New Zealand international, speaking to the media after the game, said ‘We are on the field, he isn’t. It is not his fault that we lost this match‘. Thomas said that PEC Zwolle fans had every right to boo the team after another poor performance, stating that the performance was not good enough and that the whole squad needs to do better.
Many PEC Zwolle fans would have seen a home clash with Cambuur as a great time to get their season back on track after the international break. However, the side sit on four points, just two above Willem II at the bottom of the Eredivisie. Their next three league games are two at home, the first against Go Ahead Eagles and the second against Ado Den Haag, one of the only winless sides left in the league alongside Willem II. They also face Utrecht away in between these two games, with a cup game against second tier side Top Oss before the Ado Den Haag clash.