Football Season Guide

The Sittarders' season went better than expected, finishing in 10th place. After a stuttering start, coach Danny Buijs, confirmed on the bench also for this season, managed to create a cohesive group, giving the team a clear identity. Without a decline in the final stages, when they had already achieved the survival objective, they could have competed for a spot in the playoffs. They have been very active during the summer transfer market, with several regular players leaving and many new faces arriving. While the void left by goalkeeper Michael Verrips was quickly filled with Mattijs Branderhorst, who remains to be seen whether he will be up to the level of his predecessor, and the void left by experienced central defender Dimitrios Siovas with the arrival of two reliable players such as Shawn Adewoye and Syb van Ottele, there are still some pieces missing to complete the midfield. Regulars Deroy Duarte and Justin Lonwijk, and the often-used Oğuzhan Özyakup and Arianit Ferati have been released, but so far only two little-known midfielders have been bought, Ryan Fosso and Jasper Dahlhaus, who come from the Liechtenstein league and the Eerste Divisie respectively. In attack we will no longer see the fast Spanish winger Iñigo Córdoba, but the interesting Frenchman Makan Aïko. The attack will be completed by the Croatians Josip Mitrovic and Ante Erceg as well as the young Onur Demir, at least until Kaj Sierhuis, Fortuna's top scorer last season (12 goals), returns from a serious injury, probably not before February.