Almere City FC vs FC Volendam

Nordin Bukala replaced Van Cruijsen after 46 minutes and immediately went close, meeting a Doodeman cross but failing to generate enough power. Bukala later sent Doodeman through with a through ball that was just too heavy, before firing into the side netting himself.

Volendam thought they had retaken the lead when Beukers finished after a Doodeman break, but the goal was ruled out for offside against Doodeman in the build-up.

In the final period, Van de Looi sent on Ryan de Vries, Jerayson Hoepel and Jesper Tielemans. Hoepel immediately tested former Volendam youth goalkeeper Joël van der Wilt, who denied him. Payne and Belfqih also had chances but could not beat Van der Wilt. Tielemans came within inches of a winner when he could not quite reach a Hoepel cross.

With one minute left, sloppy defending from Volendam allowed Milan de Haan — who had come on for Almere at half-time — to pounce. The former Volendam man swept the ball low into the left corner, settling the contest at 2-1.

• Milan de Haan (Almere City) — Thrown on at half-time, scored the winner against his former employers. The definition of an impact substitute.
• Marley Dors (Almere City) — A constant threat down the flank, scored the equaliser with a composed finish into the far corner.
• Déron Payne (FC Volendam) — Came off the bench to score a well-taken opener and was involved in most of Volendam's best moments.
• Joël van der Wilt (Almere City) — The former Volendam youth goalkeeper made several important saves in the final period to keep Almere in the game.

Player of the match: Milan de Haan.

Both sides made wholesale changes across the three periods — Almere used 21 players, Volendam 22 — making traditional stats less meaningful. The key metric was the final-period shot count: Volendam registered several clear chances (Bukala, Hoepel, Payne, Tielemans, Belfqih) but could not convert, while Almere punished a single defensive lapse. This was a recurring theme for Volendam, who have now lost all three pre-season friendlies despite creating enough chances to take something from each.

FC Volendam are now without a win in three pre-season outings (0-1 vs RKAV Volendam on 5 July, 1-3 vs Jong AZ on 11 July, 2-1 vs Almere City). Coach Erwin van de Looi, who has publicly stated the squad needs strengthening — particularly at left centre-back — has work to do before the Keuken Kampioen Divisie campaign begins. Volendam's next friendly is against RKC Waalwijk on Saturday 18 July (17:00 CET, Sportcomplex Putter Eng).

Almere City FC continue their pre-season build-up with a positive result. Their next scheduled friendly is against Go Ahead Eagles.

Volendam will feel they should have taken something from this match. They created the better chances, hit the post, and had a goal controversially ruled out, but defensive carelessness in the final minute cost them. For all the positive attacking play, Van de Looi's side remain winless in pre-season and the defensive issues he identified after the Jong AZ defeat have not yet been resolved. Almere, by contrast, were clinical when it mattered most.