The new Eredivisie season began with a whimper on Friday as Roda JC held FC Twente to a goalless draw.
Roda hold reigning champions
The new Eredivisie season began with a whimper on Friday as Roda JC held FC Twente to a goalless draw.
Both sides looked rusty in their first game back after the summer break, but will be glad to be up and running once more.
Avoiding defeat appeared to be the overriding ambition in both camps, with it imperative to start on a positive note.
Roda were able to secure a top-half finish in 2009/10, but they would not have relished a meeting with the reigning champions in their first fixture this time around.
Twente are much-changed from the side which took the title under Steve McClaren last season, but are still expected to go well this year.
Chances
They claimed the Dutch Super Cup on Saturday, stating their intent for the season ahead, and will be happy to have taken a point from a tricky trip on the road.
They enjoyed the better of the chances against Roda, but wasteful finishing cost them another morale-boosting success.
Bart Buysse was denied by a smart save during a tame first half, before Bryan Ruiz spurned the best opportunity of the game after the break.
Luuk de Jong came close to forcing a breakthrough as time ebbed away, but he was unable to connect with a Theo Janssen corner.
The rest of the opening weekend in the Dutch top flight is set to be split over the weekend, with four fixtures set to take place on Saturday and a further four on Sunday.
